Enter The Portal 🌀
It’s my favorite weekend of the year! As you read this scheduled blog post, I am at Okeechobee Music and Arts Festival for my third year, reuniting with friends from around the country, and seeing some of my favorite musicians live. Okeechobee is one of those places you must experience to truly understand. It really is magical. The feeling of being surrounded by a truly joyful crowd where everyone is creating core memories with the people closest to them is why I fell in love with live music. The first time I went in 2020, I had no idea what to expect, and left feeling like part of something bigger.
Attending camping festivals is truly the best mental reset. With no service, laptop, or mirrors, it is one of the only times in the entire year when I am truly living in the moment without outside distractions or stressors.
When I wake up to music bumping and sit in the sun outside my tent I realize all I have to do today is live. This gives me an overwhelming feeling of contentment with where I am now, which I rarely feel in my busy day-to-day life focused on crossing things off my to-do list. Spending the weekend outside, laughing with friends endlessly, dancing to music, doing yoga, and making art reminds me of what it feels like to be alive.
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that it's so easy to spend life looking one step ahead that you are never savoring where you are right now. This is essentially Okeechobee’s motto- “be here now”. This mantra is seen across the festival grounds, reminding you that there’s no point in worrying about the things that make you anxious in your daily life while you’re here. You are exactly where you’re meant to be.
This year I am going to try to carry this sense of mindfulness with me out of Okeechobee and into my daily life. Rather than stressing about what I need to do tomorrow, enjoy today. If I can’t fix it, let it go. If it makes me happy, why not? I want to live in the moment instead of the future.
Okeechobee is part of a larger group of Music and Arts Festivals put on by Insomniac. The law of the land at these Electronic Dance Music Festivals is peace, love, unity, and respect; shortened to PLUR. While this sounds cheesy, these values are evident in the way people treat one another at Okeechobee. Everyone is a friend, people come happily prepared to share with each other, exchanging homemade bracelets called "kandi", community, and help to anyone who may need it. This may be dramatic, but the community at Okeechobee makes it feel like a utopian society.
I feel lucky to share a love for this place and weekend with so many special people in my life. It is an amazing reunion every year, and I can’t wait to share my experience this year on my blog when I get back to the computer. Check back Wednesday for a little breakdown of my favorite sets and activities from this Okee!
Cheers,
Katie Magnolia
