Greetings,
How delightful to finally have enough mental energy to write to you after nearly a week curled up in a congested, aching, virusy-den. Sickness has a way of hitting at the most inopportune time, though it’s usually when we need the rest the most. Nothing is coincidence.
Despite the inability to taste or breathe much through my nose, there was one smell, hallelujah, that still made its way through:
The wild Nootka rose. Intoxicatingly sweet, one whiff pulls you into the present moment with unmatched tender fervor. Her essence has a remarkable way of cooling the senses while simultaneously melting frayed edges away.
In my last newsletter, I shared how the seasonal or ecological theme of my writing weaves itself in without my hand forcing it. Like the welcomed aromatic wall that hits your face on a summertime bike ride, I am struck by how “Baila turns one” had a clear message: stop to smell the roses.
Blooming on the precipice between spring and summer, the wild rose reminds us to slow down and take a breath before charging forward. I needed to pause and honor the solar return of this practice before I could fathom bringing it into its next year. I needed to check in on what’s felt empowering, and what’s felt draining, and adjust accordingly. I needed to simply stop and marvel at what’s come to bloom in the garden of my life—always our most fertile ground. There is a buzzing in places that once felt barren, the succession planting unfolds, and I contemplate how I may cross-pollinate for a visionary, luscious future.
In May and June, I paused to reflect on this newsletter’s one-year birthday in Baila turns one, parts one and two. Part one took a birds-eye-view of themes from the past year, while part two reflected on lessons learned from this creative practice on Substack. I hope you’ll take a few moments to read them.
I hope the resources that follow support you in taking time to pause and collect before blazing ahead. I hope beauty finds you in the process. I hope you please keep making your art and your offering, because you don’t even know who needs it yet.
I hope you consider becoming a paid subscriber or leaving a one-off token of appreciation to help expand this work. I hope you know how grateful I am to be among the recipients of your attention—the most valuable form of currency. I’ll never stop being honored that you’re here.
For the mind
Read | Watch | Listen
Common Shapes, a podcast by
, offers practices, systems, and rituals for leading a creative life, and has been a tremendously helpful resource to me in spurring ideas and putting a little pep in my step.
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