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Writing
Be You
For most of my life I didn't know who I was. I lived as I thought I should, as others told me to. That was my life.
Then one day I went quiet. For about four months I quit my life. Silence. And lots of sewing. When I was ready to emerge back into my life, I was well on my way to knowing myself for the first time.
And what came through the strongest was simple: help others.
Help others find their own authenticity and express it through sustainable living, through personal style, through using what already exists around us. There are so many things in the world. Let's use what's here already.
We each come here with gifts that are essential to our communities, to the world, to humanity. When we don't express them, we deprive others of our gifts. Of us.
During this new moon, this beginning, in this blank space, I invite you to go quiet, if even for a few moments. Then ask yourself, “Who am I? Who am I when I stop shoulding, when I stop living for others? When I really listen, what’s there? What is it that only I can offer?”
That is your authenticity.
That is where your gifts are waiting.
Then do that.
Take a Break
I hold my client's ankles. It’s the very beginning of a polarity therapy session. It’s intuitive, my body working with theirs. One minute… two minutes… three minutes go by. Nothing. Nothing intuitively comes to me about where to go next. I could fill the silence with movement just to feel useful. But I don't. I pause.
And then, something comes. I know exactly where to move to next.
Polarity therapy teaches us to react to the client’s energy. To do. Then rest. Act, then pause. The pause is part of the work. It’s when the body integrates the energy shift.
I think about how rarely we apply this to our own lives.
As a society of doers, we run from thing to thing, as if anything short of that is us failing, falling behind. But what if the pause is where the next thing is waiting?
The new moon asks us to do just that. It is the darkest, quietest point in the lunar cycle. Not an ending, but a fertile stillness before something new is born. It doesn't rush. It holds the space until it's ready.
This month, I invite you to examine where you may be pushing too hard. Pause. For as long as it takes.
Update on the polarity session: my client told me it was the best session they’ve ever had! :)
Just One Thing
I read a book once by a woman who collected an entire year's worth of trash in a single mason jar. I was at the beginning of my journey to sustainability, and I froze, feeling completely inadequate, like there was no way I could do this right.
Sustainability means something different to everyone. For some, it's a calling, a lifestyle. For others, it's quieter, like replacing one single-use item with something reusable, taking several fabric totes to the grocery store to carry your groceries home, purchasing a secondhand garment on Poshmark.
I don’t know about you but to me, pressure to do anything takes all the fun out. And if I don’t do it, shame, judgment, and guilt always follow, and that's never helpful.
Instead of feeling inferior next to mason jar lady, I decided to pick one thing—create reusable alternatives to single-use items from repurposed materials and sell them to people. Not very business savvy, that endeavor didn’t succeed, never mind. I ended up using my creations—handkerchiefs from soft thrifted sheets (kleenex replacement), reversible tote bags from deadstock fabric (plastic bag replacement), padded face and body wipes from thrifted towels (cotton swab replacement).
Anyone can do this. Pick one thing that feels easy. Do that thing as much as you can. Feel good about it. You don't owe anyone a mason jar.
The planet doesn't need a few people doing sustainability perfectly. I think it prefers most of us doing just one thing.
My Friend, King
Ages ago, I knew a tree.
His name is King, a gigantic eucalyptus who lives in a park a few blocks from my old apartment. He stands at the edge of the park, towering above the others.
I can feel his happy, excited energy from blocks away. He knows I am coming.
When I reach him, I greet him like an old friend.
“Hi, King! I’m so happy to see you. I’ve missed you.”
I climb onto his great roots, rising above the ground, and place both palms on his smooth trunk. They seem tiny against him. With my eyes closed and head lowered, we exchange energy. It is our version of a hug. Afterward, I sit on those huge, bumpy roots and quietly bask in his presence.
I think of King often with so much love in my heart. And because there is no time or space in the world of energy, I know he thinks of me too. He knows.
Maybe this new moon is for remembering what already knows you. What already loves you. That we are never separate from life, even when we feel alone.
To Hum
Everyone hums.
But did you know it’s good for you? It stimulates the vagus nerve, which helps regulate the nervous system and settle the body.
Humming is calming. Such a simple, quiet medicine. My body seems to know what’s needed before my mind does. I sometimes hum to my two cats. They love the long and steady notes, they feel it. It regulates their nervous systems, too!
I gravitate toward humming slower songs, like Yesterday and Summertime — and then I slow them down even more. I stretch out each note. Something shifts. I notice where the vibration lands. Sometimes in my chest, behind my eyes, or deep in my belly. Sometimes I feel more energy, sometimes calmer, sometimes a kind of gentle focus appears that wasn’t there before.
I experiment with tone, as something softens, or opens, or settles. I hum until something feels complete, or until another song quietly makes itself known.
I hum anywhere – while creating in my sewing studio, walking, in the shower.
It’s never a conscious decision, I just hum. Somehow, it’s always right.
If you don’t already hum, I invite you to try it. Pick a song you love or one that’s been hanging out in your awareness. Slow it down. Stretch it out. Change the notes around. Make it last. Notice where you feel the sounds vibrate through you. Hum to your beloved pets.
It doesn’t have to be perfect.
Just hum.