Own Your Magic

It’s been awhile since I’ve written a love note here with my musings and I think that’s due to the fact that I was seriously savoring summer, which ended up just blending right into savoring fall!

As many Minnesotans can attest to, when the weather is nice, you gots to just be outside as much as possible before subzero temperatures return to the frozen tundra of the midwest. So, the past several months, I’ve been focused on being outside, connecting to nature, and as evidence by my instagram feed, posting as many nature pictures as I can.

The funny part is that I do most of my best writing when I’m outside walking the trails and taking in the beautiful surroundings. I’ve written you millions of blogs in my mind over the past several months, but they never quite got to the electronic version of this here online journal. Perhaps that will be a project for winter, when I’d rather be cozy indoors on the couch with my warm beverage and wooly socks.

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In my breathwork circle on Friday, I shared that I had recently watched The Greatest Showman for the second time with my man. While the songs are still stuck playing in my head today, the colorful imagery and fantastical messages are stuck playing in my heart.

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We may not have horns coming out of our head or a beard on our face, but we may have talents, fetishes, gifts, strengths, or quirks that are "out of the box" and don't fit with the labels society gives us. They might be considered odd or strange. Our dreams might be considered "out there". Our ideas too weird, too big, too loud, or too impossible. Our expression and energy too much.

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I get a little misty eyed thinking of how much colorful, mystical, fantastical, unbelievable, amazing, creative magic is hidden away inside of us because we might be afraid to shine, to be great, to be seen. To maybe fail. But to also maybe succeed in ways we ever knew we could until we try. 

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My wish is for us, (on this Halloween day and every day in between) as we wind our way to the end of this year, to own our magic. Follow our muse. Embrace our "too much". To give some love to the parts of ourselves we've hidden away. Because as Hugh Jackman would sing, "Cause everything you want is right [inside] of you." 

Complacency and Change

Last year during the solar eclipse in August, I set some intentions around my healing practice and career choices.  Now that the year is almost complete and we have another August eclipse (and new moon!) on Saturday the 11th, I can feel that there's some change in the air for me. 

I've been doing some of the same things for a long time, in terms of my healing practice but also with some of my daily routines and habits.  It's time to mix things up and put some of the creative things out front and center that have been on the back burner for a long time out.  If you've been around with me for awhile, you know that I believe it's important to have regular check-ins and time for contemplation about what's working and what isn't.  As I've started to tune in to see where there's been growth and where I feel stagnant, I realized I have the habit of putting my own projects last, if I can squeeze in the time.  The creativity muse has been giving me great ideas, but I haven't fully honored that muse and taken the next steps.  So it's time to make some changes! 

With change though comes a little bit of fear and doubt.  Complacency can be a really comfortable place!  Why leave what feels familiar?  I know I've allowed myself to stay in a number of different places and spaces out of complacency even though I was well past the "overdue date" and well aware of it!

(Image: @precisionnutrition) 

Thankfully there are a multitude of tools you can use to help you through those growing pains and transitions.  For me, breathwork is one of those tools that helps me the most because it gets me out of my thinking, worrying mind and into the truth of my body and spirit. 

In honor of the coming new moon, I encourage you to take time over the next couple of days and ask yourself some questions:  
What is working for you right now?
How are your boundaries, routines, self-care rituals?
Where do you feel stuck or stagnant or burdened?
Is there an area you are ready to make some changes and how can you support yourself through those? 

And let's acknowledge that we don't have to make a huge overhaul of our lives all at once.  It's just one step at a time, one small aligned action at a time.  But the key is action.  Giving yourself that little push into momentum. What can you do right now today that tells yourself and the universe that you are making waves and space for something different? 

Sending you lots of love and support as we travel through this new moon solar eclipse! Blaze on beauties! 

Full Moon June Bloom

This morning, with my cup of hot coffee and my puppy snuggled on the couch, I read my *Many Moons* workbook about today's full moon energy.  Author Sarah Faith Gottesdiener wrote: 

"...a June Full Moon is optimal for magic around expansion, creativity, and pollination.  Hives are buzzing, flowers are being fertilized, the air is sweet with the scent of life. ... A wonderful use of a June Full Moon - any Full Moon - is celebration and appreciation of life.  June carries a feeling of joy, liberation, resistance, and reinvention.  A Full Moon is a wonderful opportunity to take pause and relax into where you are right now." 

This resonated for me in many ways. 

Last summer at this time, my man and I were in the midst of doing a "home change".  We had decided it was time to move from where we were living, so all the work that goes into purging, cleaning, fixing, searching, intention-setting, showing, selling, and purchasing a new home-base went into effect.  From last June to the end of September, our time and energy was consumed with this quest.  We consider that time period "The Lost Summer".  

Fast forward to this summer, we are experiencing this season in our new house for the first time and we have declared this as "The Savor Summer".  We are enjoying the little things, like watching what plants pop up in our yard, grilling on our patio, and putting our feet in the grass.  We are going for walks, playing golf (mostly Steve), eating all the summer fruit (mostly me), and swimming in ponds after chasing squirrels (mostly Moon). 

I share this with you, on this glorious full moon in June, in order to inspire some savoring of your own.  What is it about summer you love most?  Can you incorporate some of that into your days?  What are you feeling grateful for in your life?  Where would you like to live bigger, freer, more abundantly?  How can you add some creativity to your daily routine? 

Can you allow the sweetness of a juicy peach to run down your chin?  How about picking some wild flowers and making a crown or a bouquet for your office?  What fiction novels can you get lost in or outside outings to adventure through? 

As we scroll through our social media feeds and listen to the news, we can see (and maybe even feel) the chaos and pain the world is going through.  We have families being separated, black boys being killed, volcanoes erupting, plastics in our oceans, loved ones who are sick, and a plethora of other unsettling and distressing things.  Like Sarah said in the quote above, let's use the "liberation" and "resistance" energy of this time and of this moon to make changes and to take action for humanity and for the planet, whether that's by calling our politicians, donating our money, investing in re-usable straws and bags, or cooking a hot meal to share, etc.  

AND!  Let's also chase our joy.  Let's take in all that this season has to offer.  Let's savor being alive.  

We can do both.  We need to do both.  

Happy Full Moon - blaze on, Moon Beam!  You've got summer savoring to do! 

{New Audio} New Moon Meditation

Happy New Moon!

If you've been with me for awhile (and many of you have been - thank you!), you know how much I love a new moon.  A time to start fresh, to dream big, to declare desires!  

Even if I'm feeling a little stuck or a little depressed, new moons seem to give me that little bit of extra optimism, energy, and hope to make some changes, to find my gratitude, and to love myself a little more through it all. 

Words of wisdom from my favorite astrologer, @chaninicholas! 

On this day of new intention setting and new beginnings, I'm sending you a free 7 minute breathwork audio recording to use in your daily practice, if this modality resonates for you or you've been wanting to give it a try but haven't.

For my at-home breathwork practice, I like to breathe right away in the morning, whenever I feel my monkey mind getting out of hand, right before I'm about to sit down to work on a creative project, or whenever my emotional cup is feeling very full. 

So I invite you and encourage you to use this whenever you need a little guidance in coming back to yourself.

Here's a little intro video:

An introduction to the free 7 minute breathwork audio recording for your daily breathwork practice. Enjoy and happy new moon!
(And tons of gratitude to my teacher David Elliot for teaching breathwork!)

And here's the breathwork audio: 
 

If you give it a go, let me know how your journey was!  I'm always here for you so send me your questions or thoughts.  

And if you'd like to go a little deeper, I offer one-on-one sessions in person or long distance as well as monthly groups.  Join me sometime!  

Happy New Moon beauty.  May your body feel vibrant, your thoughts creative, and your spirit free! xo