gratitude for this life

quick thoughts + a poem ♡

Gratitude for this life. I've touched on a handful of elements / themes this month, but it all boils down to a vast love for the life I've been gifted, the one I've created, the one I've journeyed, the one that's still forming like a vibrant mystery and exhilarating ride. It's been an immensely hard year, sure, but the beauty is bigger. The gratitude is louder. I am achingly thankful for my husband, my kids, my other loved ones, my adventures, my passions, the way each of my days has the capacity to open to me like a hug, like an old friend, like an unexplored field where light is settling like a blanket.

my cheek touching his skin
creates a whole new galaxy
that we slip into, laughing
while everything rearranges
while sensation is melody
while the spiral turns golden

gratitude for shadows

 

Gratitude for the shadows: the people and days that strengthened my self-knowledge, my resolve, my courage, that helped me to grow, that allowed me to touch my limits and say 'no more'; a poem. ♡

ten of swords slips from my pocket
like a packet of moonflower seeds
and I don't even want to look back
but, still, I pause and bow to the ground
I just walked, the soil that's in the lines
of my feet and dusting my skin,
and I let that piece of earth hold me
for a moment as I whisper thank you,
and I'm not sure who I'm thanking,
but maybe them, or maybe the land,
or maybe myself, and when I once
again stand, my backbone is made
of wilder stuff. 

gratitude for everyday gifts

 

quick thoughts + a poem ♡ Gratitude for everyday gifts: sparks of meaning and connection, flashes of beauty, the steadying pace of the mundane, the thrill of the unusual, gentle affection and shared jokes, all the moments that cascade and collect into each day. There is so much. So many gifts. This poem, though, explores quick interactions and chance meetings as one of those such gifts. ♡ I pull the ribbon and unwrap the surprise: they were strangers, and strange, and (momentarily) known, and loved. waiting for paint to shimmy into the right shade of green, he tells me to stay strong. watching the moon drip down, she speaks on lifelong awe. water melting to shore, he talks of art as the curse and the savior. it is about dreams and astrophysics and making the abstract real. it is about light settling into the landscape and energy as a force. it is my pink matching their mom's wedding dress and house, memories shading their eyes as I snap their lighthouse photo. it is a smile, a wave, a nod, a laugh, a reminder that they aren't alone, and, by magic, by miracle, by delighted wonder and soothe, neither am I.

gratitude for freedom

gratitude: freedom of thoughts, ideas, dreams, movement, and being, a poem ♡

I wrap the atmosphere
around me as I accelerate
and touch the horizon

as I speak words that grow
wings and nest their way
into minds and hearts

as I breathe wishes
glowing echoes of dreams
to an awaiting star

as I become a lullaby
to soothe and coax dark
nights into a morning

full of meadowlark song.

gratitude for celebrations

gratitude: celebrations (of birth, of holidays, of dreams realized, of crossing thresholds, of deciding to keep going, of aliveness in all its shades and frequencies), a simple poem ♡

we splash through puddles and put on funny hats
we laugh, we ascend, we descend, we collapse
into the bed after a day where the lights vibrated
faster and brighter than we'd ever experienced;
sealed with a kiss, wrapped softly and lavishly
in a future cherished memory, we dream sweetly.

gratitude for nature

gratitude: nature, a poem + list ♡

I trace the shoreline with my steps
a few in one direction to solid ground
a few in the other to being swallowed by depths

with each rush of waves, I find my own edges
with each moment longer, I find my form
with each pulse of ever softening light, my skin

becomes scales and feathers, my hair breeze
and blooms, my eyes moonglow and longing
my voice something that pierces the dark   

♡

some of what I'm thankful for: the feel of the earth beneath my feet the day after rain. sunbeams bursting from moody clouds. skies saturated in color and texture. the moon in all its phases. waves crashing against my body. the wild mood and energy, the chaos and soothe, of the ocean. waterfalls flowing over me. the sound of rushing water. when light slides like butter down softly rolling hills. wind through tall grass. orb weavers. the way spiderwebs catch light. the sound of birds taking flight. feathers on the ground. nests securely or delicately nestled in trees and against homes. owls and hawks in the air. birdsong. the speed at which a snake disappears from sight. the way armadillos nuzzle into the earth as they find food. the mysterious thrill of spotting a wild creature. woods vibrating with lightning bug glow. the crunch of leaves. snow-angels and the silhouetted bones of the trees. rainbows. storms with lightning and purple air. when the air feels so comfortably right in temperature and flow that it's complete peace and ease. scenes collected in rain puddles and the glee at splashing through them. sunshine warmth on skin. first blooms and the shade of spring green. fields of wild color. barely there paths to welcome me into unknowns. how I, too, am nature.

gratitude for my people

gratitude: my people, those dear to my heart, a simple poem ♡

we sit in the moonlight
a fire dance on our skin
laughing howling tossing
wishes to flame, for more
of this, for less of that
for the life birthed to bloom
how it was always meant to

for the life humming
through our veins to gift us
more kisses in the rain
and held hands and melting
embraces and shared glee
and strong shoulders,
but we don't know, and so

we laugh more, talk more
watch star shimmer tangle
into the kids' hair as the dogs
bark in excitement, as night
grows more noisy before
it once again softens and we
say bye, I love you, drive

safely.

gratitude for the ancestors

 

a simple poem by me ♡

with soil beneath their nails
with their babies in bed
with long roads ahead
and a wild chill in the air

they wrapped themselves
in light and now they wrap
me, too, in a blanket made
of a thousand whispered

lanterns.

gratitude

Being in awe and thankful for the experience of aliveness is not tied to any particular day or season. It is, or can be, in every breath. Often, though, we're nudged to remember practices of gratitude in November.

It has been a complex stretch of years, so I want to lean into this energy, to explore with curiosity as the month unfolds. I don't just mean skipping rocks over the surface, or being thankful for only ease (which, certainly, deserves a bow of appreciation too), but for the richness, the texture, the endless layers of life.

I'm thinking of how ee cummings summons the thrill of being here in this world when he writes, "i thank You God for most this amazing / day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees / and a blue true dream of sky;and for everything / which is natural which is infinite which is yes."

I'm thinking of how Mary Oliver often speaks similarly of truly paying attention and being present, but also how she gives a nod of retrospective gratitude to the more tangled lessons when she writes, "Someone I loved once gave me / a box full of darkness. / It took me years to understand / that this, too, was a gift."

I'm thinking of how David Whyte weaves it all together when he writes, "Gratitude is the understanding that many millions of things must come together and live together and mesh together and breathe together in order for us to take even one more breath of air, that the underlying gift of life and incarnation as a living, participating human being is a privilege; that we are miraculously, part of something, rather than nothing. Even if that something is temporarily pain or despair, we inhabit a living world, with real faces, real voices, laughter, the color blue, the green of the fields, the freshness of a cold wind, or the tawny hue of a winter landscape."

As I step through the threshold to November, I opens my hands, cupped, offering a blessing, receiving a blessing, all woven with threads of gratitude, an energetic tapestry of wild, wild aliveness.

short story: being the shadow

Happy Halloween + Blessed Samhain! ♡

Today, a short fiction by me. Genre: a teeny eerie. Enjoy the shadowy wander! 

♡

She walks along, among meadow, among a fallen scatter of gold, rust, and scarlet, among sunshine so thick it can nearly be held and allowed to drip through cupped hands like honey.

She walks along, farther, deeper. Then, farther and deeper still. More meadow, more leaves, more dance of light against her skin, even as the breeze seems to cool with each step.

She notices how that breeze causes a new path to open through the grasses. How it is a hand slipped into hers that is pulling her along. How it is a hand to her back pushing her along. How it is a whisper in her ear that she cannot quite hear, but almost. Almost. She takes the new path.

The grasses eventually turn to brambles. The sunshine softens to a glowing echo as clouds push in and charcoal themselves. This isn't easy terrain. She could turn back. It is not too far, not really. And yet, the whisper grows in her ear, and she somehow knows the best way back is to keep walking forward.   

She walks along, farther, deeper. Then, farther and deeper still.

She reaches a grove. The trees are tangled mystery, some green, some holding their leaves through all the change, some bare wooden bones. The whisper grows louder.

She takes a step in, then another. Farther and deeper. She cannot see where she entered anymore, and the area seems larger than she had anticipated, each step a new world, each step a louder whisper. Light seeps in from above, enough to allow the trees to cast shadows along the ground. It is a continually moving art formation, erasing and re-forming and erasing.

As she walks among the shadows, she feels a little unusual. It is a feeling of heaviness, like gravity is clutching her, causing her to quicksand into the earth. Like the weight of the world is quite literally on her shoulders and there is no timeline in which she could feasibly have the strength to hold that kind of weight.

The whisper grows louder, louder, louder. She can finally make out what it says. A collision of memories, fears, perceived failures, times tears kept her from sleep. The words make her feel even more unusual, more uncomfortable. She shakes her head, as though to clear the thoughts, hoping to let them fly from her mind and be carried by wind. It is all just too much. The weight, impossibly, gets heavier. She keeps shaking her head. She closes her eyes and breathes. She shakes her head more.

The whisper ceases.

She begins walking again. Farther and deeper. Farther and deeper still. Each step now makes her feel lighter. Each step, she seems to lose gravity. Each step, she almost becomes breeze. She glances down and realizes she can barely see the outline of her physical form. Looking at her palms, she sees the faint lines, the bones, the hum of life, but only barely. Only barely.

The lightness, though, feels so divine.

She is vaguely aware of when her form fades all together, or maybe she is not aware at all. Maybe she will remember again when the seasons change, but she can't be sure. She feels so light in all this darkness.

As the tree shadows elongate, so does she. As they contract, so does she. As they tangle, so does she. Later, when they rest in the blanket of darkness, so will she.

great horned owl

poem by me ♡

I follow the flight and calls
wild prairie grass tangling around legs
wild seeds weaving into hair
wild shadow and light dusting skin 

I journey on and farther, through
fresh doorways made of bark and vine
- then, he places a feather into my hands
and the wild air grows soft, grows still

He flies me back, through the woods,
the grass, the tangle of thorns and blooms
down the old gravel country road
my feathered torch of collected light

Cocooned inside again, I curl into sleep
smelling wild, feeling wild, thinking:
the dark woods are home, the sky is home,
and so is this, and so am I.

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from Owl Research Institute and Forest Preserve District - Will County.

opossum

 

poem by me ♡

I stitch together the cosmos
then prairie grasses
and dark pathways
the weight of the moon's fullness
wild howls touched by sky
the times I stood up for myself
the times my eyes glowed ancient;
I stitch and weave more and again
softness, fierceness, aliveness
- then wrap myself in it.

I face the monster

wholly wanting and planning
to cause the leaves to shake free
the spark to become flame
the mist to storm
the skin to shed
wholly wanting and planning
to confront, to speak, to growl
to scrub the mirror clean
and hold it like a shield
with light and truth blinding.

instead,
I melt into the cloak and rest
between the threads of night.

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from The Nature Conservancy.

bat

simple poem by me ♡

I, too,
become twilight

having shadow wings
existing as mystery
surrounded by echo
by aching need

I, too,
become night

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from The Nature Conservancy and Bat Conservation International.

raccoon

poem by me ♡

I place it all into the stream
this stream vibrating with light
this stream flowing as it
was always meant to flow

I place it all into the stream
the hope that has faded
the sorrow that risks the dam
the shadows that weigh

I place it all into the stream
and initially the intensity
increases like a vast cicada
song humming within my skin

I place it all into the stream
and once it is felt, once it is
given a voyage name, it de-
parts, and I breathe with ease

I (this self vibrating with light
this self flowing as she
was always meant to flow)
place it all into the stream

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from PBS Nature.

hawk

 

poem by me ♡

driving from here to there
almost touching eighty

land and sky merging
their own form of two-step
wild tangle of golden green

a hawk flies across my path
low enough where we could
have eye gazed if the world

had paused, but instead
our feathers brush in brief
hello at this crossroads

unmarked by society
but known wholly by us.

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from The National Audubon Society.

orb-weaving yellow garden spider

poem by me ♡

I walk the spiral path

wandering out, brushing
against life, collecting shards
of light and sustenance
then returning to my center

painting my skin with glow
and dreams, jotting down
meaning, identity, words
onto tongue and into heart

looking myself in the eye
as I fade and reform, as I shed
one version and live another,
a silent and loud weaving

wandering out, brushing
against life, collecting puddles
of light and sustenance
then returning to my center

I am the spiral path 

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from National Wildlife Federation and University of Florida - Entomology & Nematology.

squirrel

observations and a poem by me ♡

squirrel observations: using their tails as fuzzy umbrellas while eating in the rain. flattening against cooler or wet earth on steamy hot days, looking like furry pancakes. parkouring through trees, solo or with a buddy. watching people and the world with endless curiosity. burying nuts every.where.always.  

poem:

when I look to the future, the pragmatic, the to-dos,
the tough work now that lends to later softness and ease,
I weave gold tinted leaves into my hair and flow
with playful and wild grace, letting the weight feel
like adventure, like a chase among winding branches,
like the earth catching my stumbles,
like the present and future holding hands.

♡ 

Science info in the graphic referenced from Forest Preserve - District Will County.

hummingbird

simple poem by me ♡

a hummingbird collects nectar 

and air right outside my window  

dining on the golden blooms then 

standing still in a feathered whirl; 

it's a sweet wonder, a messenger

of joy on a day of layered grey. 

♡

Science info in the graphic referenced from Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

Note: I posted several of these on social media throughout the month, but I'm just updating here, xo.

the current will find you - wild river - poem by me

 

This wraps up my exploration of this theme. Thanks for exploring with me for the last month. ♡

I stand in the shallows
almost existing between
the ripples, the dance
of light, the breaths.

then one day the waves
build in the distance
and surge forward, 
meeting me in the present,

carrying me into the future,
and all I can think to do
is laugh because I'm
held by the water's motion, 

not drowning even a little,
leaf shadows tattooing my skin,
the lightest drops of rain
washing away the tangles.

the current will find me,
continually, like an old friend
I sometimes lose touch with,
but feel is kindred with every

coming together.

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - wild river - creativity prompt, part two

Shared at the start of the week, here was the original prompt: 

This week, we're going to play with the concept of found art. Collect things as you're going through your days - notes or receipts blowing in the breeze, a fallen leaf, a pebble, anything that catches your eye and makes you feel curiosity or peace. Place all the items in a bowl / container. Later in the week, I'll post prompts to explore and play. ♡

Now, some ideas for additional exploration! ♡

1. Consider any of the following questions for reflection or journaling: What are these art / life messengers trying to tell me? Do I see a unifying theme among the items? In what ways are they different? How do they spark curiosity? How do they bring peace? 

2. Write a short story where the main character is on an Epic Quest and is given a pouch with these items to assist them. In your story, perhaps allow the main character to use at least one of the items to gain an important insight.

3. Create a simple poem. As the first lines of your poem, write out the list of all the items you collected. Then, for your final line, fill in the blank: Mystery showed me (what?). 

4. Create a collage using all the items. Consider adding magazine clippings that follow similar themes or add extra color and texture. 

5. Arrange your items to look like a mandala: a center item with other items branching out, like how a bloom would look or a kaleidoscope. Take a photo.  

6. Weave these items into meditation. Place the bowl of items into your lap. Close your eyes and do a couple rounds of comforting, deep breathing. Ask, "What do I need to consider today?" Allow yourself to pick up an item without trying to over-think what your hand is touching / selecting. Open your eyes, observe your selection, and ask yourself. "What is this item trying to tell me?"

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - wild river - breath + affirmation

Take a little time to focus on your breathing. Try breathing in for five counts, pausing for five counts, exhaling for five counts, and pausing again for five counts. Allow yourself to receive the full expansion through your inhalation, then exhaling just as fully. Do this pattern for at least a couple of cycles, then breath however is most comfortable to you, still being conscientious with your inhales and exhales.  

Consider exploring any of the following combinations to mentally 'say' during your breathing:

On inhale:
I accept life's mystery.
I soak in life's beauty.
I receive mystery's wisdom.
I will know when it's the right time to know.

On exhale:
I release fear.
I release resistance.
I release the need to know immediately.
I release my quest for certainty. 

♡

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - wild river - poem by me

I paint the sky with mood
and it becomes a doorway
that I tiptoe through,
wrapping the charcoal
smudges onto my skin
like a smoky kiss,
like a veil,
walking toward a sunbeam
that I curl up in,
just for a moment
until the distant horizon
grows wings and calls out
my name in a tone
I've never heard before.

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - wild river - art prompt

 

Unknowns in life can sometimes be scary, but think of the ways that mystery has been beautiful in life. Maybe a choice that ended up far better than anticipated. Maybe a chance meeting. Maybe thick storm clouds rolling over the landscape with golden light finding a sky window to pour through.  

Art option one ♡

Go for a walk with your phone / camera. Take photos of anything that looks mysterious (in any interpretation of the word). 

Art option two ♡ 

Doodle or paint with the theme: "mystery is beautiful." Some possibilities: Draw / paint what exists on the other side of a closed door. Draw / paint a landscape the moment before something amazing happens. Let the pen or paint define what mystery is for you.

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - wild river - opening creativity prompt

 

Opening creativity prompt ♡

This week, we're going to play with the concept of found art. Collect things as you're going through your days - notes or receipts blowing in the breeze, a fallen leaf, a pebble, anything that catches your eye and makes you feel curiosity or peace. Place all the items in a bowl / container. Later in the week, I'll post prompts to explore and play. ♡

To see follow up prompts - here ♡
To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

Note: I shared these daily on social media, but I'm adding this week's posts here all at once, xo. 

the current will find you - week four - wild river

Here we are at week four, my final week of exploring this particular topic in this particular way. ♡

We've explored being earth-connected and resourced, splashing in the sensory, and receiving wisdom directly from the divine. In each of the weeks, there were pathways for receiving answers while also finding comfort or pleasure in the experience of living and being, even if immediate answers were just out of reach.

This week, we'll be exploring this concept even more: being open to Knowing while also savoring the rich texture of mystery. ♡

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - simple poem

 

I walk through twilight air (lavender, indigo, crushed lilacs) opening my arms to endless sky (violet, heather, scattered thistle) breathing in the wild liminal To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - amethyst

 

I'm thinking about tales that have traveled through time, folklore and fairy tales, or even ones woven of magic and fantasy in more modern times. I'm thinking of cloaks and inner power. Of epic voyage. Of no forest too dark, no path too complex. Of bravery, of knowing, of awakening. 

Amethyst is an ideal companion for such a journey. It is a pathway to intuitive opening and knowing, but it's also the cloak that cocoons us in safety as we walk that path.   

In her book The Encyclopedia of Crystals, Judy Hall states, "Opening multidimensional awareness, it enhances metaphysical abilities and is an excellent stone for meditation and scrying. Sleeping with amethyst facilitates out-of-body experiences, helps dream recall, and assists visualization. It guards against psychic attack, transmuting it into love..."

♡

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - activity for receiving insight

PRE-ACTIVITY THOUGHTS ♡
For this, it's ideal to go outside to a place where it's safe for you to lower or close your eyes for a few minutes without interruption. Doing this on a day where there's at least a light breeze will add to its beauty and ease. (If you cannot go outside, feel free to do this inside using your imagination.)

When you are asked to imagine, visualize, or “see” something, you may experience visuals, or perhaps you feel the sensations in your body, or have an inner knowing that this is happening, or have words surface into your awareness. There's no one right way, despite the language used. However you experience it all is perfect.

ACTIVITY ♡
Please go outside, walking intentionally to your chosen spot, taking care to breathe fully - nourishing inhales, fully emptying exhales - while observing everything along your path.

Feel free to remain standing or sit down, whatever feels best for you. Lower your gaze or close your eyes. Take a couple of minutes to be with your breath, allowing your body and mind to soften more and more with each cycle.

Imagine a golden, glowing circle of light around your physical form. Know that you will be safe and that you will only receive wisdom that is for your highest good.

Do you have a specific question that has been tugging at your mind or heart? If so, state this aloud or in your mind. If not, perhaps state something like, "What do I need to know for my highest good?"

Feel the breeze brush against your skin, your clothes, your hair. Does it soothe? Tickle? Something else? Be with the sensations as you breathe in, out, in, out.

Now you realize that this breeze isn't just a normal breeze. It's made of energy that's earthy, swirling with what almost looks or feels like roots and moss, rich browns and deep greens. It's also made of energy that's cosmic, swirling with golden and silver light, glimmering like quartz. You have access to what is both deep and vast.

This breeze continues brushing against your skin. As you inhale, you feel this breeze mingle with your breath, flowing into your body. Stay with this breeze and your breath for a couple of cycles.

Say, "I am open to receiving my answer now." Listen. Receive. Don't over-think or analyze, just let whatever words or images arise to do so.

Take another breath and open your eyes, feeling your feet touching the ground solidly beneath you.

♡ Jot down any important messages and observations in a journal, xo. To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - guided journey to discovery

OPENING ACTIVITY ♡

Do something that allows you to feel really grounded, such as spend a few minutes outside barefoot or resting your hand / body against a tree.

PRE-MEDITATION THOUGHTS ♡

With meditation, be as comfortable as you can be, in a space where you can be uninterrupted. No rigidity is required; the body deserves comfort. Be cozy, either sitting, reclining, lying, or intentionally moving.

When you are asked to imagine, visualize, or “see” something, you may experience visuals, or perhaps you feel the sensations in your body, or have an inner knowing that this is happening, or have words surface into your awareness. There's no one right way, despite the language used. However you experience it all is perfect.   

When doing the following meditation, feel free to read through it, then do it without referencing the words. In the future, I plan to record guided meditations.   

MEDITATION EXPERIENCE ♡

Start by lowering your gaze or closing your eyes, focusing on your breathing, inhaling in a way that feels nourishing and filling, then exhaling and completely emptying. Continue with your breath for a couple of minutes, allowing your body and mind to soften more and more with each cycle.

Imagine a golden, glowing circle of light around your physical form. Know that you will be safe and protected as you journey deeper and wider. Continue focusing on your breath, feeling both secure and elevated with inhale and exhale. 

Now you see a staircase form in front of you. What does it look like? Is it rustic or ornate, classic or spiraling? Begin walking up the stairs, taking in the sights, textures, feelings, whatever details are available to you. Continue with your breathing. Walk higher, then higher.

Eventually you come to a landing with an archway that is painted purple. Pause a moment before entering to take another breath. Feel light enter and saturate your body with your inhale, feel resistance and limitations leave with your exhale. Say, "This room is for my highest good."   

Now enter this room and explore. What do you observe? What feelings, sensations, or thoughts surface as you look around?

In the middle of the room is an opened book. You have the sense that whatever is on that page has special meaning for your life right now. When you walk over and take a look, what is on the page?

Explore for as long as feels good, then walk back down the staircase. Refocus on your breathing for a couple of cycles. When it feels right, open your eyes again, rub your legs and feet, returning fully present and grounded. Jot down any important messages and observations in a journal, xo. 

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - poem

I weave a nest of all the things
that made my heart skip a beat
then grow a bit wilder

first kisses, recent kisses,
an owl flying toward me
as I danced on dark land,
lines of poetry, night dreams
that became real in daylight,
puddle splashing, seeing
energy like vibrating colors,
twined fingers, deep hugs,
the mystery, the knowing,
the expanding mystery

and once my nest is a real
thing in my hands, heavy
with experience and glow

I climb to find its perfect
place in the tree just outside
my open window

stepping into the nest, I feel
my breath merge with breeze,
and I fly.   

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the divine - mindfulness dancing

Sometimes meditating while in motion really opens up my energy in a unique way, helps release whatever is stuck emotionally or mentally, and allows me to step into a new plane of receptivity and aliveness. Maybe you'll find the same to be true, or just have fun exploring. ♡   

Don't worry about being a good dancer. This isn't about skill level. It's feeling the music and the spirit, setting intention, and flowing with it. Also, if you have any physical limitations, please modify as needed, such as remaining seated and swaying your body or moving your arms from your chair. 

This activity is inspired by Dancing Mindfulness: A Creative Path to Healing and Transformation by Jamie Marich that I read some years back.  

PRE-DANCE ♡

Choose a song that feels "divine" to you. It can have words or be instrumental, feel soft or higher energy. I like using shamanic drumming because those rhythms get my brain into a flow state. I like using cello music because the moodiness gets me in touch with deeper layers of myself. I also like to use a variety of modern music with words that resonate with whatever theme I'm exploring. I highly suggest "Astral Plane" by Valerie June. 

DANCE ♡

Chose a place and time where you can be uninterrupted, where you can feel uninhibited. Then, turn the song on, putting it on repeat so that you don't feel time-limited. 

Take a couple of focused breaths and ask yourself, "What quality do I want to embody as I explore the Divine this week?" Let the answer flow naturally into your awareness. For instance, maybe it's intuition, grace, or curiosity. You know what you most need.

Once that quality has been revealed to you, use your finger to write the word into the air in front of you. Then, step forward into that word, see or feel your body touch it, absorb it, become it.

Now, dance! Explore dancing while softening your eyes. Move your body in whatever ways feels good. Sway, spin, become the music. Whisper (or yell!) the word you chose. If you feel led, write it again into the air and pull into your body over and over. 

Stay with this for at least the length of the whole song, but dance with this quality for as long as feels right. 

When you're finished, place your hands on your heart, take a couple of breaths into your heart space, and affirm aloud, "I embody (your chosen word)."    

♡

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡ 

the current will find you - week three - the divine

 

At the edge of mystery or slipping into its texture. Grounded and well-resourced internally and externally. Exploring the sensory as a spiritual and delightfully human pathway. Now? Now! we delve into the Divine. 

Of course it's woven into earthiness and the senses as well, but this week we're going to explore the more overtly esoteric aspects, including how you can connect to the divine and how you, too, are divine.   

This concept can be received however feels best to you. For you, the Divine could be: your inner wisdom, your highest self, the universe, mother earth, source, god, goddess, angels and guides, or whatever energy flows into you and from you that gives your existence deeper and more expanded meaning + connection. 

♡

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the sensory - mary oliver + dare

As we wrap up the second week's theme, I dare you to make an extra effort to pay attention. Perhaps this poem will give inspiration.  

"This Summer Day" by the incredible Mary Oliver ♡

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean—
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down—
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the sensory - poem

a space opens up inside me;
I step through it, into the day,
my hair still streaked with stardust
and dreams as sunshine soaks
the field, the trees,
my awaiting skin 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the sensory - simple activity

Today, consider taking time to have a pleasurable experience. Not just hedonistic; instead, cultivate or step into an experience that nourishes your senses, that feels good in your physical form and also elevates your spirit. 

Some ideas: go for a nature walk. lie on a blanket to watch clouds, the sunset, or stars. have a tea, coffee, or snack. take a shower or bath with products that smell + feel good on the skin. dance. go barefoot. give yourself (or receive) a massage. splash around in water. make love. sing your favorite song. watch an animal in the home or wild. wrap yourself in the softest blanket you own. smell flowers. go for a country drive. give / receive a long hug. create something.  

Be with your breath as you're feeling through the experience - take conscientious breaths before, during, and after. This allows us to settle more deeply into the experience, making it oh!so!sweet!, while linking it more fully to the spiritual.   

Also? It does something pretty incredible in the brain. Neurologically, we're wired to have a negativity bias. In order to survive throughout the timeline of humanity, we've needed to remember the bad. In his book Neuro Dharma, Rick Hanson gives an activity to counter this effect, to utilize "beneficial" experiences and "increase the neural traces they leave behind." It's a whole lot like mindfulness. His method is: have a beneficial experience, enrich it through breath + feel it + "see what is fresh about it" + "find out what is personally relevant in it," and absorb it through intention ("the experience is sinking into you").      

♡

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the sensory - guided journey

Opening activity ♡

Take a moment to hydrate with a favorite drink, warm or cold, whatever feels most comforting right now - perhaps tea, coffee, lemonade, water. Pay attention to how the cup feels in your hands, how the cup looks in the light of your space, the fragrance as you bring it to your mouth, then the taste and the sensation of your body receiving the nourishment.    

Pre-meditation thoughts ♡ 

With meditation, be as comfortable as you can be, in a space where you can be uninterrupted. No rigidity is required; the body deserves comfort. Be cozy, either sitting, reclining, lying, or intentionally moving. 

When you are asked to imagine, visualize, or “see” something, you may experience visuals, or perhaps you feel the sensations in your body, or have an inner knowing that this is happening, or have words surface into your awareness. There's no one right way, despite the language used. However you experience it all is perfect.    

When doing the following meditation, feel free to read through it, then do it without referencing the words. In the future, I plan to record guided meditations.   

Meditation experience ♡

Start by lowering your gaze or closing your eyes, focusing on your breathing, inhaling in a way that feels nourishing and filling, then exhaling and completely emptying. Continue with your breath for a couple of minutes, allowing your body and mind to soften more and more with each cycle. 

Now imagine you are walking along a path that you recognize. Perhaps this is a dirt trail with wild nature all around you, or perhaps an urban sidewalk with a planter of flowers here and there. It's a place where you feel comfortably yourself. Don't worry about exactly replicating this place from memory - it is simply inspired by a previous experience. 

As you walk along, take in the familiar, as well as the changes, with all five of your senses.  What is around you? How does the sky look? How does the path beneath your feet feel? What do you see, hear, smell, feel, and taste as you walk this path? Soak in as many details as you can, letting your body fully feel the details. 

Then, you see something that's not usually here. It is a doorway right in the middle of your path. What does this door look like? What is its color, shape, and texture? Is it simple or ornate? What do you feel when you see it? When you touch it?      

On the door, you see that a note has been written. Looking closer, you read, "This is your doorway to feeling good." Take a couple of nourishing breaths, knowing that only what is most aligned with your highest good is on the other side of the door. 

Now open the door and walk through. What awaits you? What does Spirit / Source, or your guides, or your highest good, or your subconscious want you to know about feeling good? Explore using all the senses available to you. Take your time. This is a daytrip into yourself. Allow yourself to soak in all the details, all the sensations. Stay with it, exploring or existing, for as long as feels good to you. 

When you've felt and received as much as you want to feel and receive today, walk back to the door you entered. Know that you can bring all the good from this place back with you into your daily life. You step back through the door and close it gently behind you. 

Walk back along your familiar path as you breathe fully. Refocus on your breathing for a couple of cycles. When it feels right, open your eyes again, rub your legs and feet, returning fully present and grounded. 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - the sensory - poem

 

Once upon a time, I had to curl up to sleep
between a rock and a hard place for the night, 

and so I scooped up leaves and fallen feathers,
petals and fuzzy unknowns, lullabies to myself

and the tiniest threads of hope, to create a nest
of comfort, something to soften the edges

until shadows and moon glow eased into sunrise
watercolors, into birdsong, until I could stand

and feel and breathe, until I could laugh
at the absurdity of it all and run-dance toward

the next adventure, the one almost in view,
just at the shoreline, the wind in my hair

as the waves find me and I find them, finally
awake again, eyes bright, sand between my toes. 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - week two - the sensory

So here we are at whatever unknown we're navigating. The daily, the life-changing, the simple or profound, the conscious or unconscious, the act of being alive right now in this complex world. Whatever or however it looks to each of us. 

We are aware of the inner and external resources we have to feel a bit more grounded and safe as we journey. What now? 

I'm a big advocate for embodied spirituality. Not trying to escape this wild and vibrant world, not trying to ascend beyond this wild and deeply-feeling body or the creative limitations of being human.  Instead, leaning more into the experience, the bright and sometimes stormy adventure, which allows us to go even more deeply within. The opening goes in all directions.   

Enjoying the sensory - the world around, five senses, layers of creativity, acts of whole aliveness, pleasure! - is one way of allowing mystery to reveal insight. It allows us to feel more comfortable in uncertainty while also opening our awareness beyond the mundane. It gets us into flow states to receive messages or nudges or inner knowing.  

♡

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - muddy feet - a simple practice

Connecting purposefully to our natural space is grounding. Today, consider creating temporary art with pieces of nature found around your yard, hiking spot, or town, showing respect and gratitude for everything collected. Here is mine. ♡

(I posted this on Saturday via social media, but forgot to share it here. Oops. ♡) 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - muddy feet - smoky quartz

Life is sometimes like a fairytale - there we are, facing and entering the dark woods. Big transitions,  voyages, epiphanies, the shedding of skin, initiations, epic unknowns as we recover inner knowing. Moments or stretches in time that are significant to our identities and life paths. 

Each day, though, we come across other thresholds, maybe less dramatic, choosing which gateway to cross through, which path to walk along, which door to approach. Maybe these decisions won't turn our worlds upside down, but they are still the moments, too, that culminate into a life.   

Whether facing the (nearly) mystic journey or the (seeming) mundane, smoky quartz is a lovely and useful companion for exploring the new that each choice brings.  

Smoky quartz is readily available, yet that doesn't lessen the fact that each piece feels like a world of mystery and wonder to me, itself almost another doorway to cross through as we lean into the stone for support with others. 

Smoky quartz is well known for being grounding and protective with the ability to transmute anything that feels heavy and unaligned. In The Encyclopedia of Crystals, Judy Hall says that smoky quartz also "helps tolerate difficult times with equanimity, fortifying resolve." 

Blessed journeying! ♡

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - muddy feet - the alter of self, part two

I am (no) rhyme or reason,
and I am whole, and here.

I can create endless haiku while dancing
beneath the scatter of stars, and when
I (accidentally) became a skeleton for others,
I made the empty spaces into a garden. 

I perspective shift with ease, sweet talk
wildlife from afar, follow owls, float on energy
currents, laugh a lot. I read, meditate, question,
wrap myself in soft fabrics, whisper gentle words

into my ears. I learned the value of 'good enough'.
I problem solve, make plans, hold space, run
into dark fields. I've written hundreds of letters
to friends, to strangers, to strangers that became

friends. I fell in love across oceans. I birthed babies
into my own hands. I have connections that have
lasted decades and others that are new flickers.
I get called kind, but also blunt, but also sassy

and fierce and independent, and I take them all
as compliments even if not gifted that way.
I frown at people who tell me to smile,
and I smile freely at life.   

I can be so overcome with awe that threads
of the universe momentarily separate before
reforming. And now, I place a flower to my
heart, light a flame, honoring the wonder

of being in this body, in this world,
at this moment in time. 

To learn more - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - muddy feet - strengths + the alter of self

When facing layers of mystery, a doorway to an unknown landscape, it helps to remember all the strength we actually have within ourselves and within reach.

This has been explored in plenty of ways through scientific research, psychology, and spiritual traditions. I'm referring to the skills, resources, interests, personality quirks and traits, personal values, emotional growth, knowledge, spiritual exploration, creative development, relationships + connection, lessons learned, wisdom inherited, and, and, and.

Simply, what are the gifts you give yourself, whether pragmatic or more ethereal, very simple or complex?

When exploring this concept of strength, some possible questions to pose to yourself: How do I soothe myself and others when times are tricky? Who has my back? In what ways do I have my own back too? How do I express joy when life is bright? What makes me feel bone-deep glee? What am I doing when I feel the most authentically myself? When do I feel especially awake and free? How do I express myself? How do I explore creativity? What practices do I have that nourish my physical body? What hard times did I make it through whole? Which broke me open so that I could reweave myself, how did I do that, and who was I on the other side of it all? What hardships did my ancestors navigate so that perhaps I wouldn't have to? What skills did they have that whisper somewhere in my subconscious?

The you that exists in this very moment is an alter to yourself. Years of knowing, ability, and strength collected into skin, heart, mind, and spirit. 

You are more than qualified to live your life.
You are sacred and wise.
You are worthy of candlelit blooms. 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡ 

the current will find you - muddy feet - earth comfort + animal guide

Opening activity ♡

Feel your feet touch the earth. Feel the earth touch your feet. Stand, sit, or walk around for a few minutes, continuing to notice the reciprocity, the touch given and the touch received.

Pre-meditation thoughts ♡ 

With meditation, be as comfortable as you can be, in a space where you can be uninterrupted. No rigidity is required; the body deserves comfort. Be cozy, either sitting, reclining, lying, or intentionally moving. For this particular meditation, lying down will help. 

When you are asked to imagine, visualize, or “see” something, you may experience visuals, or perhaps you feel the sensations in your body, or have an inner knowing that this is happening, or have words surface into your awareness. There's no one right way, despite the language used. However you experience it all is perfect.    

When doing the following meditation, feel free to read through it, then do it without referencing the words. In the future, I plan to record guided meditations.   

Meditation experience ♡

Start by lowering your gaze or closing your eyes, focusing on your breathing, inhaling in a way that feels nourishing and filling, then exhaling and completely emptying. Continue with your breath for a couple of minutes, allowing your body and mind to soften more and more with each cycle. 

Now imagine lying down on the earth. It's earth that feels like home to you, perhaps your yard, or wild prairie, or a forest clearing, maybe a space you've physically visited before or maybe somewhere that's freshly reaching out to you now. 

As your body rests on this piece of land, it almost feels as though the earth softens just a little, contouring around your body, the way a mattress might give gently beneath your weight, supporting you just as you most need to be supported. Let the earth hold you as you breathe. Feel the security, the safety, the stability, the knowing, the comfort. Rest in this space as long as feels good. 

In the periphery of your awareness, you notice an animal being. They mean you no harm. They are there only to support you. What do you see? What do you feel? What do you sense? Would it feel good to call them closer? To eye gaze? To converse? Let yourself have the experience that feels best with your animal guide.   

Thank them and allow them to move back to the distance for now. Feel the earth holding you fully again. Refocus on your breathing for a couple of cycles. 

When it feels right, open your eyes fully again, rub your legs and feet, returning fully present and grounded. 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - muddy feet - poem

I wander around with muddy feet

remembering how my youngest would refuse
to immerse immediately in water, instead painting
his skin with earth as he steadied himself on shore,
making himself into an island, solid and ready,
before stepping into the flow

I wander around with muddy feet

brushing against the textures of moss and bark,
grass and blooms, feathers and leaves and roots,
weaving a crown made of petals and dancing light,
wrapping myself in sage, in lavender, in the warm
echoes of those who have walked the paths before 

I wander around with muddy feet,
and then. 

For more info - The Current Will Find You - Intro ♡

the current will find you - intro

This summer, I was in a circle / meditation about the mystic archetype. I had a couple of questions about the future, going this way or that, and received a spirit message, "The current will find you."

It reminded me some of the quote by Rainer Maria Rilke, "Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.”

It was also a bit beyond that too, with added threads of spirit and energy woven in. And, so, this message evolved into this four week offering.

This concept could take up months or lifetimes, but I've divided it into four sub-themes that feel important and good for me to personally explore, and maybe they'll be a candlelight or firefly flicker for your own exploration - a spark that helps or inspires. 

For the rest of the month, I will be posting near-daily. There will be poetry, crystals, meditations, simple rituals, prompts, etc.

And, first, we start with: Muddy Feet - grounding into the known as we open to the unknown.

Welcome! ♡

crystal exploration: golden healer

Lately, a blessing has come into my awareness. It has been spoken in women's circles, printed in a greeting card even, its form shifting ever so slightly, but the essence remaining. 

I wish for you what you wish for yourself. 

Affirming. Empowering. Respecting autonomy, each person's wisdom, and their own unique journey, desires, and needs.

Golden healer quartz is this blessing in crystal form. Considered a master healer, it is iron-included quartz that has golden tones, often with intricacy and layers. Like paths, like worlds.

All that yellow works intimately with the solar plexus chakra, our sense of self, our personal power. The quartz it's woven into amplifies that connection. 

Golden healer will sing out the blessing - I wish for you what you wish for yourself! - but it will also help you navigate and understand exactly what it is you wish for yourself.