What is Brilliantly Bohemian?

Simply put, it’s BRILLIANT! No, seriously, it is…

When I decided that I was going to create a website, I knew that I had a message to share with the world, a greater purpose I wanted to fulfill in my life, and passions that I wanted to explore. What I did not know was what my brand was going to be or how I would attract an audience interested in my content. Luckily, I stumbled upon helpful resources that provided direction on the technical steps and planning required to get this thing going. The first few exercises coach you through your brand identity and what your “niches” are; or more importantly, what you are passionate about in life. I discovered, to no surprise, that mine are:

• Travel- ever since I was a child I have dreamed of going to the far away places I would read about. This urge is never satisfied, no matter where I go, it only grows.
• Wellness- identifying with my draw to natural solutions such as essential oils, hiking, yoga, and a plant-based diet helps me to feel balanced.
• Ancestry/History Research- I’ve always felt connected to my family’s past and history in general. I especially enjoy visiting historical and cultural sites when traveling.

Taking my passions into consideration for a brand name, I began to brainstorm all of the words that I felt related to them. This sounds much easier than it is; in fact, I was having trouble after only a couple minutes. I knew I wanted my blog to be travel related and my sister says that I, no doubt, have gypsy soul; however, I didn’t want to blatantly spin off of the popular wanderlust traveler movement. In that moment I remembered another popular term, “boho”, short for bohemian and another word for gypsy or traveler. I thought, “that’s clever, but bohemian what…?” As I pondered this, I looked around my desk and noticed a small journal that was a gift from a friend, on it was the inscription: “You Are Brilliant”. I knew that very second, that’s it! Brilliantly Bohemian! Not even 24 hours later I had already purchased the domain names and website, set up the social media sites, annnnnd that’s when buyers remorse began to set in. “What am I even doing?”, I thought. We will come back to that thought in a couple paragraphs.

I’ve been researching my family’s ancestry on and off for about the last decade. In the last year I have picked it up again; taking a more serious approach by investing in platforms that afford me the access I need to specific pieces of information and documents. The majority of my time has been spent digging around the records for my fathers surnames. My mothers surnames have been a bit more challenging, especially for her father who was adopted when he was young. Not too long after I purchased my website name, I was explaining the concepts behind my blog to my mom and how I would be interested in knowing more about my grandfather’s parents. Coincidentally, she explained that just recently she stumbled upon some old photos that were scanned into her computer. As luck would have it, they were my grandfather’s parents and grandparents! Finally having those precious names, locations, and approximate years; I began my search. Almost instantly, I found my great-grandfather on Ancestry.com, Miroslav, what a unique name! Though what I stumbled upon next was even better…

It turns out that my great-grandfather, born 1902 in St.Louis, was the first generation of Americans for this branch in my family tree. His parents were immigrants from Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic) and bohemian was their native language! Other noticeable coincidences were that Miroslav’s father, John (“Jan” short for Johanes), arrived in the port of Baltimore (not even an hour from where I live) and one record even sites his date of birth as a possible November 11, 1869 (unconfirmed). In another blog post I will go into my thoughts and experience with the 11:11 phenomenon, for now let’s just say it’s a significant sign in my world! Add to it that the United States is about to experience a total eclipse, with one of the hot spots happening to be….that’s right, St. Louis. If the universe is trying to get my attention, I would say it is succeeding.

A wave of validation rushed over me and my intuition told me that this was a sign, my blog…my name…my brand…I’m going in the right direction. At this point, I’m so excited that I am updating my mom as I am finding each new fact. She says to me, “see, I always told you that come from a long line of gypsies…this is who you are.”

That was it, Brilliantly Bohemian: The Journey of a Gypsy Soul, was created and I now use that small journal to write down all of my “brilliant” ideas.

From my journey to yours…