From my notebook

A few things keeping me afloat these days.

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The past couple of weeks have been… a lot. We’ve navigated big deadlines at work, a teething toddler, prepping for the first work trip post second baby, changes at daycare, friendship challenges at school, helping a friend in need. And this was just one day. Here are some things that have been grounding me, breathing creativity and life into the cracks, and keeping me afloat amidst the waves.

• This podcast about our innate desire to adorn. I’ve always been fascinated by the act of adorning, how we use nature’s gifts to create ornaments and symbols that we wear and place and cherish. And how this act is passed down from generation to generation. We now have evidence that the earliest adornments date back over 160,000 years ago. The word ‘adorn’ and ‘ornament’ relate directly to the word ‘order,’ to make meaning. In many traditions across the world and millennia, to adorn is to directly enhance and pattern consciousness. This podcast weaves together science, ritual, and story to explore humanities deep connection to adornment.

• Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb. I devoured this book. It’s funny and heartbreaking and raw. Among many other things, this book brought so much insight into the inner workings of therapy, and the beautiful pearls of wisdom that we can glean from being with people, just as they are.

• I’ve been following Jessie Harrold’s work for several years. She works with people traversing radical life transitions and has a beautiful podcast called The Becoming Podcast. Her wisdom has brought so much comfort to me as I’ve navigated motherhood over the last five+ years. I recently joined her latest offering - a six-week women’s circle - and it's been just what I needed.

• This song by The War on Drugs. There is something so damn reminiscent about this song, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. I could listen to it for hours on end.

• The Queen of Cups. For the past four or so years, I’ve been exploring the tarot. It’s been a healing and anchoring tool for me as I wrap my body, mind, and spirt around life as a mother. The Queen of Cups is a powerful card, inviting us to leave behind the world of the known and move closer to our our sacred place of inner tending and care. Working with this card has been a beautiful reminder for me to reconnect with the things that offer restorative refuge and that it’s essential that I seek out space and time (even for a few moments) to do so. (For those who are curious about tarot but don’t know where to start, Lindsay Mack is your person. She teaches a heart centered approach, rooted in an inclusive, soul-led, trauma informed framework.)

• Our jasmine vine. It’s in full bloom and it’s giving me LIFE. I’ve been sitting on our patio underneath our pergola, where the jasmine is growing, and her magical scent wafts through the air. It’s divine.

Queen of Cups among the jasmine.

What’s nourishing you? I’d love to know.

As always, thank you for being here. Until next time.

Sarah