Category Archives: Inspiration

Look Up Lesson for the Holidays

Look Up Lesson for the Holidays
Author Heidi Siefkas and Father Looking Up for the Holidays  After a two-week work trip, I returned home for the holidays. I was eager to sleep in my bed, drink from my favorite coffee mug, and even take a long, warm bath. However, this year’s holidays reminded me more of hurricane season than holiday season.…
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Look Up from Ground Zero Hudson River Valley

Look Up from Ground Zero Hudson River Valley
Look Up from Hudson River Valley, New York Earlier this month, I revisited Hudson River Valley, New York, a region that holds a very special place in many hearts. It is a beautiful area, not far from New York City, that was carved out by glaciers, leaving a gorgeous outdoor adventure playground with rolling hills,…
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Best Travel Experiences of 2018 Because I Trusted My Gut

Best Travel Experiences of 2018 Because I Trusted My Gut
Whether a hole in the wall tapas bar in Ourense (Get your head out of the gutter, not topless!) or a gay beach in Havana Cuba, I look for unique, off-the-beaten-path experiences everywhere. I’m curious and adventurous. However, I’m also mindful of my surroundings. So it just goes to show that I did listen to…
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Look Up – A Tool to Overcome and Evolve

Look Up – A Tool to Overcome and Evolve
If this is your first time or your umpteenth time reading my blog, I'm happy to have you here. One year ago, I did a TEDx talk in South Florida called, “Overcoming Coming Obstacles and Evolving to Your Life 2.0.” If you haven’t already seen, it please do so and leave a comment. TEDx Talk Overcoming…
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Look Up Mantra from Havana Cuba

Look Up Mantra from Havana Cuba
Happy Look Up Day from Havana, Cuba! For those that have been with me over the last nine years, you know my backstory and the BIG bump in the road. It was on a normal fall day in Poughkeepsie, New York that taking out the trash and a BIG bump on the head and neck became the…
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A Gesture that Brought Tears to My Eyes in Havana Cuba

A Gesture that Brought Tears to My Eyes in Havana Cuba
On a Cruise to Cuba It was a bit before midnight in Old Havana, our ship, the Carnival Paradise, had just left the terminal. Many of the guests, including myself, had decided to go to the upper decks to get their last glimpse of Havana. Meanwhile, hundreds of Habaneros where gathered on the famous Malecón,…
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Look Up Reminder from Out at Sea

Look Up Reminder from Out at Sea
This year, I have had a whirlwind of adventures to Cuba, but most of them have been via a cruise ship. Cruising for weeks at a time with little to no Internet nor cell service has been a great reminder to Look Up: 1) Be in the moment & 2) Find the Upside. On this Look Up…
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Returning Home to Look Up – Trempealeau, Wisconsin

Returning Home to Look Up – Trempealeau, Wisconsin
On a recent trip to my hometown of Trempealeau, Wisconsin, I was reminded why it is so important to Look Up and share it with others. Country Childhood I grew up on a hobby farm in rural Wisconsin outside of a small river town called Trempealeau. I was given the name Heidi after the book…
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How Hiking Boots Reminded My Mom and I to Look Up

How Hiking Boots Reminded My Mom and I to Look Up
Last week, I was very fortunate to celebrate my mother’s birthday with her in Acadia National Park. We had no idea that this little part of Maine on the Atlantic Coast was the seventh most popular national park in the country with nearly 3.5 million visitors a year. We arrived the week before the summer…
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An Artistic Reminder from Madrid to Look Up

An Artistic Reminder from Madrid to Look Up
All over Madrid, there are these statues representing a famous painting called Las Meninas by Velázquez. Although these life-sized women are a new installation, they brought me back to when I studied the painting in my classes at the Prado twenty years ago. Special Menina with a Reminder to Look Up This menina (maid of honor)…
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