we once were LOST...

Since there are only a few episodes left in the epic series known as LOST, i thought it might be fun to see how much we've changed along with the "losties" over the past 6 "seasons" of our lives.

ABC's LOST premiered in 2004. I remember watching the pilot and thinking, "Wow, finally a good show on TV!" As usual, we were in the process of moving, and had (as usual) just sold our couch and easy chair to lighten the load, since we were moving into a smaller loft in downtown Colorado Springs. So we sat on the floor and watched the show and couldn't stop talking about it for days.

Through thick and thin, we've hung in there with the characters and haven't missed an episode. But, just like the characters on the show, we are completely different people now than we were then.

Here's a recap:


**2004 jen+tommy**

• ate meat. lots of it. i grilled steak, chicken or burgers at least 3-4 times a week, and we often ate pepperoni and sausage pizza. egad!

• we smoked. alot. at least a pack a day for both of us. at that point it was 6 years for me and 10! for jen.

• our main hobbies included going to bars, the shooting range and hiking. we thought we were healthy, but....

• we blamed everyone but ourselves for the condition of our life, in everything from financial standing to happiness to "security"..

• i was very angry in general because i'd been out of college for 3 years and was still working as a landscaper and janitor. design was just a glimmer in my eye, and jen's art consisted of stained glass mosaics and hemp necklaces. she was working as a waiter at Carrabba's at the time. i also felt "trapped" in colorado springs and that i would never be able to move, as if "someone" was holding us back other than ourselves...

• we had no spiritual practices whatsoever, although i was starting to develop an interest in buddhism and was reading quite a few books about it from a historical and philosophical standpoint.

So then, just like on LOST, the plane crashed, we were left stranded on a deserted island, and we had to "sink or swim" so to speak...6 years passed...

**2010 jen+tommy**

• 100% vegetarian, 90% vegan. our favorite meals now consist of grilled vegan burgers, stir fry veggies, sweet potato lentil soup, polenta casserole and Ezekiel bread. Mmm! Never felt better on the inside. It all started with practicing mindful eating, and really thinking about what you're chewing up and how it got to your mouth. Then, jen's sister cindy came to visit (vegan) and taught us more about why it's bad to eat meat, eggs and dairy - all in a very peaceful, non-judgmental way. The closer was going to hear alicia silverstone speak about her new book, The Kind Diet, and then meeting her in person afterwards to discuss being vegan and how great she's felt ever since.

• we've moved 8 times since 2004 and have lived in 3 different states besides CO, including south florida, right on the intercoastal; lowell, mass, just outside boston; portsmouth, nh, a cute, cozy new england postcard town located on the tiny NH seacoast.

• we quit smoking in 2008, while living in florida. jen now jogs over 5 miles per day and we both do yoga at least twice a week.

• i finally hooked up with a design agency in florida, worked at the office for one year, then moved out of state, keeping my job, and i now work from home 100% via skype and email. jen is now able to stay home and pursue her art career full time as well.

• we bought, lived in, fixed up and sold a cute 1950s home for a nice profit - "coincidentally" right before the market took a dive in CO...

• our hobbies have changed to include walking around towns and cities (flaneuring), meditation every day, reading spirituality books and/or listening to podcasts on metaphysics and spirituality, and attending various spiritual and religious groups such as online kabbalah courses (sunday night), jewish shabbat at the local synagogue (fridays), lectures at the local christian science church (wednesdays) and group meditations and discussions at the local buddhist sangha (tuesdays).

• we no longer blame anyone or anything for the conditions our lives are currently inside, whether they seem positive or negative. we've learned that we can either choose our path or someone else will choose it for us.

quite possibly, the largest catalyst for all this change was when we watched 'The Secret' on Dec 30, 2006. keeping in mind that the film is merely intended to be a starting point, not an end result, that was really the key turning point for us that launched our using the law of attraction (and all the other laws) to create the life we wanted - more importantly, it opened up our desire for spirituality, which i think was the real goal of the filmmakers anyway.

you see, as you start acheiving your goals in the physical universe and getting what you think you want, you start to realize that those things can't ever fulfill you. thus, by satisfying your earthly desires, your desire for spirituality becomes greater as well. this gives you the fuel you need to seek -- and believe me, if you seek, you WILL find.

we're living proof.