Greetings everyone! I am writing from the tip of the Baja California peninsula, in a tranquil desert oasis. The silence is profound and the only sounds are the gentle winds brushing amidst the palm trees, and the ocean waves far off in the distance. Waves of Monarch butterflies are making their way south for the winter, amid tall cacti and flowering bushes. It is here my friends, that I have made my own transformative journey, and will spread my wings and fly into the future of life's greatest potential.
2016 was a year of transformation. Rainbow Cloud Kombucha saw it's biggest year ever, more than doubling in sales for the fourth straight year in a row. Not only that, we won the title for "Best Kombucha in the Northwest," against many of the top national kombucha giants, many of whom never heard of the little Rainbow Cloud. This brought an amazing sense of fruition to my heart, and I again thank our entire team who put their love and passion into our brew this year- especially our general manager, Leland Harmell. Leland has taken over the oversight of the brew, and has completely transformed our company, from my hippy dream creation to a fully legitimate infrastructure that has enabled us to not only serve a greater audience, but has created a gold star of quality standards to make sure our kombucha has tasted the same as it did in 2012, when we began in a little corner of Olympic Mountain Ice Cream's Skokomish Valley kitchen. Big love to our team and all of our customers who have supported us and watched us grow over the years!
Aside from Rainbow Cloud's success, I have experienced one of the most emotionally devastating years of my life. While I won't go into too much detail of what happened, I will say that the greater part of 2016 has involved deep loss, the process of grieving, of feeling, letting go, and slowly putting the pieces of myself back together. The process brought up a well of contemplation inside of me, namely the deep existential questions; Who am I? What am I here for? What is my soul's true purpose? I decided to make some major changes; separate what's true and real from what's false, eliminating unnecessary behavior, purging material possessions, sinking deep into creative expression, and rediscovering a passion for the practice which has saved me again and again, on all levels of healing: Yoga.
Feeling the call of my heart, a deep need to return to the source of All That Is and listen to the call of my life's True Purpose, I gave away and sold 90% of my personal belongings, took a sabbatical from Rainbow Cloud Kombucha, and returned to the Yandara Yoga community in Todos Santos, Baja California. For the last few months i've walked barefoot, sleeping in a tent by the ocean, immersed in the practices of Yoga, immersed in Nature, the Sun, the Moon, the Galaxy of stars above, the elements, and the quiet symphony of the desert and it's inhabitants. We have laughed, cried, expanded beyond ourselves, and emerged from this pure chrysalis, spreading our wings in wholeness and stepping into who we truly are: sharers of the Present Moment, of Simplicity, of Community, of Authenticity- of Joy!
Over the last 2 months I have experienced a Metamorphosis of profound measure; more accurately, a Unimorphosis: a Becoming into Oneness. Metamorphosis translates into "Becoming more than oneself." I have found myself on a journey of Un-Becoming, peeling away into the Center, the Stillness. The Essence. A process of Realization, of why I am here, and who I can be to better serve humanity. Of listening to my own inner wisdom, and becoming quiet enough to hear the whispers of that Source.
I Stand in My Center of Joy! I Trust this Joy and I Know what feels Good!
And so, in the Here and Now, I am stepping forward, in Joy and in Presence, to share with the world the Joy we all already have! My goal in this life is to laugh again and again into Unity Consciousness, and help us all discover the treasures of Joy within! It is so simple! It is ALMOST unfair!!! What we seek is inside of us! May I be the spark that lights your flame! :)
I will be offering my services as a Yoga Alliance 500 teacher, certified Life Coach, Laughter Yoga Instructor, and Alchemist of Music, Dance and Song. My desire is to share my mosaic of life experiences to help you connect with your own inner Joy, and offer an invitation of infinite creative potential and the realization of the life of your dreams!
Look out soon for my personal website featuring life coaching services, yoga and private classes, including mixed modalities of stress reduction techniques designed to bring you into a state of inner harmony, allowing the body, mind and soul to relax into your natural state of ease. From this inner state of stillness we have access to the fountain of Joy, a wellspring and key ingredient in manifesting our deepest desires and highest goals. The paradox is, that once we find Joy in the Here and Now, there comes the Realization that there is actually Nothing to Attain, Nothing to strive for, and that we have everything we needed all along. And when this state is realized, the universe responds to our vibration, and we are granted Everything. Deep Gratitude! Thank you for sharing this journey with me!
Matthew G. Eklund
Founder- Rainbow Cloud Kombucha
A day will dawn when you will laugh at all your past efforts. That which will be the day you laugh is also Here and Now. - Ramana Maharshi
May all beings be Free and Happy!
