Creative Estates: Be Kind

The past couple days I have been thinking long and hard about this post about Creative Estates.

I thought about what I wanted to write, which photos I wanted to post and which details I wanted to share. To help me prepare I went around and read the other girls posts, viewed their photos, and read their tweets. 

As I read, I was reminded how similar each of our circumstances were, just how different our reactions were.

I think, it is clear and we can all agree that at Creative Estates:

1. There was not enough beds for everyone

2. We were not offered a well balance diet

3. There was not a variety of drinks available

4. We were not all properly introduced

5. The schedule got off track and their wasn't a whole lot of crafting being done

Overall, resources were scarce and things did not pan out the way they were planned.

Were our reactions to these the same?

No

But can you expect the reactions from 35 different women, from different backgrounds, different personalities, and different ideas to be the same?

No

Honestly, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Everyone is entitled to write about their experiences. And everyone is allowed their freedom of speech.

That is why, I feel I should write about my experiences and opinions.

When I first saw the tweets about Creative Estates, I had no idea what it was. All I knew was that there was a lot of great bloggers attending. Many were some of my favorite bloggers. 

So when I saw a tweet that there was a ticket being sold by someone who couldn't attended, I tweeted Ashley, "I wish!" To which she responded "Why not?" Which got me thinking yeah, why not? There were many excuses for me not to attend and many reasons I was afraid to attend.  

But bottom line was they were nothing but excuses and fears that held me back. Reaching beyond my comfort zones and pushing away these excuses and fears, I bought a ticket.

Fast forward four weeks. 

My things were packed and ready to go.

This retreat couldn't have come at a more perfect time! Just when the stress and drama of life was at an all time high. Leaving on this retreat, was an escape from reality.
At, least I thought it would be.
Until reality smacked me right in the face.

Reality that you can't escape your problems.
You can't leave and expect things will just be okay. 
Drama does not cease just because you change states. 

I am reminded of this in my personal life.
I was reminded of this during my time at the retreat.
And I am reminded of this now. 

 As I sift through the blog post and tweets, I see the hurt feelings, the negative comments, and the drama. I just hope we can remember how similar our circumstances were, whether it be personal life or on this trip. I also want us all to keep in mind how different our reactions to these circumstances may be depends on individuality.

Remember there are 35 individuals.

We see the world differently.
We see situations differently.
We have different ideas.

But we are all people.

We are entitled our own opinion.
We are entitled to write about our experiences.
We are granted freedom of speech.

Our reactions do not all have to be the same.
However, we should respect each other enough to be kind.

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Now that I got that out of the way, I will be posting more about Creative Estates next!