Oh wow! Hello again, friend! I took a peek and noted it’s been a few weeks since I’ve written something to share in the vastness of the worldwide web. I got tied up with analog writing — in the form of journaling, 3-Minute Mental Makeovers, joint action charts, and such. And all the delights of winter with school-age humans.
Being busy in real-life (IRL) has been gosh darn delightful. Sincerely. I use some words too much, because I haven’t found anything that sounds warmer to what I mean. So, I have some old favorites I put on a lot. Like “joy”, “bliss junky”, “sincerely”, “good gravy”, “rad/radical”. And I have go-to music that hits those places for me.
Currently, I’m struggling to identify the route to use to communicate. For example, I would rather not spend extra time on social media. BUT, it’s a way folks can connect with each other the fastest and with the greatest ease. I feel a combination of love/hate (or some such similar relationship). I have an experience I want to share, then I consider — is this for facebook? instagram? the entire internet? My close friends/confidants/family? My tribe? Who cares because it’s all a giant mushy space right now and its future is ever-unfolding?
(Here’s the song “Ripple” by the Grateful Dead to tickle your eardrums)
Because I could spend my time on here complaining. I could find problems and bring attention to them. I’ve done that. And I will continue to do so. And, I will also spend that time collaborating. Communicating. Community-ing.
Some inputs that I read or see drain my energy. Others fill me up.
This (Substack) is an output for me, and an input for you. When I write here, I do it considering that anyone in the world could read this, reach out with a question, leave a comment, etc. and have a conversation/dialogue. The power of social media, the influence of influencers, OUR WORDS, will turn the tide of history — which is a lot of pressure on the ways we interact with each other. (If you haven’t checked out Reggie Watts on instagram, consider this a nudge to investigate).
We can shine a light on a problem and say: This, over here, it needs your attention.
Individual — in a collective.
I’m here to be a productive part of an ongoing conversation.
I will plant good seeds with the words I share. In my conversations, interactions, and echoes into the cosmos.
What I write, I hope you see, is more than just writing for me.
This (writing) has been processing of significant growth in my life. Me processing. My individual experience, growing a collective.
What’s at the foundation of this collective is based around conversations I’ve been having with myself here. It’s all been with the future in mind, now, and before. But with the future in mind open-mindedly. Where I can write it as “fiction”, then call it a vision. What I’d like to see in my future. And my kids.
My Boundless Wishes
I’m seeing it.
Blown away with the aliveness of it all.
Appreciating the dance between seasons.
The magic we observe,
create,
and share.
What a time to feel alive.
Navigating tricky paths. Feeling lost. Wandering.
I find myself, again and again.
“I am lost but not alone” — Michael Franti. What a dude. Give it a listen by clicking below.
And at this time, (to actually stick with a metaphor this time) I am meandering into… a clearing. A lot of my headspace was ocupado. Distracted from the main trail… I was sure I saw something over this way…
And I came to a space, a place, a time, a song, a lyric, a paragraph, a stanza, a brushstroke…
… the delightful animated show “Hilda” and people just enjoying the same thing for a bit…
… a chime, an ornament, a honeysuckle blossom, a falling star, a shooting star :D …
… a gust of wind, blinking lights, zinnias, dahlias, lavender, Queen Anne’s Lace, dandelions, spider plants…
We humans are neat. We assign meanings to these experiences, delighting in the magic. We call it by all different names.
Serendipity
Synchronicity
Magic
God moments
Heaven on Earth
Love
Light
Awe
Surrender
And in the lighter moments, it feels energizing to gather in big groups and communica (I think that was the word Dacher Keltner used in Awe — please anyone who’s read this book - Paperback coming in January! I’d delight in a conversation about this book or the movie “Inside Out”). (Oh and can we also talk about “World Within a Song” by Jeff Tweedy??) To be in community feels like medicine to me. And when I talk with others, I hear that resonates with them. Warmer.
When we talk and you say, “I shared this with a friend and they want to read more of what you write”. Holy smokes — that means so much to me. I did this thing, because I can’t not, and you liked it, and shared it, and they liked it, too? That’s the feeling of a community supper for me. That I can prepare a snack of a post, sometimes a meal, occasionally dessert, and maybe some salt or sourdough bread — in words. I prepare these meals from my brain stew, and you keep showing up to read/listen…
Thank you for spending yourself with me.
You could’ve been doing any other thing right now. Chosen any other input.
Thank you for making choices that are resonant with our common ground.
This shared planet on which we stand. Sit. Lay. Into which we’ll return, like it or not, we’re all cycling around these life seasons. And I am grateful to find myself in this season with you.
Love,
Jessie