Healing Hands

If you’re reading this, I’m honored that you felt called to read this note as I know we are all receiving so many emails and opportunities these days. While the creativity is inspiring, the options can feel overwhelming if we don’t have the bandwidth to take in information. So thank you for being here!

(And if you’re not reading this, I trust we’ll connect sometime in the future when the timing is right! :) )

Early last week, my husband asked if I could give him some reiki and lead him through a meditation. OF COURSE, I said yes, because it’s my favorite way to support people and, frankly, I have missed being able to touch. While I was resting my hands on his chest, I wished I could still offer this way of healing to you.

And also, I had this thought:

YOUR hands are healing hands.

You are actually your own healer. Use your hands!

Now, I do want to say that this doesn’t take the place of getting some training in energy work because there is a code of ethics when it comes to working with other people and their energy (ps: they need to give you permission first!), but just because you aren’t attuned in a particular lineage doesn’t mean you can’t use the natural healing ability you have within you to support yourself.

Touch can be soothing. It can be a way of anchoring us into our bodies during uncertain times of change and transition. A nurturing, trusting, consensual touch can help relax the nervous system and can help us to feel safe. Our bodies can relax and unwind when we experience being held. And you have the ability to give this to yourself.

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Here’s one way you can do it: feel your feet on the floor. Take some deep breaths. Feel the crown of your head reaching for the sky and invite in the expansive light from the cosmos to come down through the crown of your head. Bring your focus to your heart. Take some more deep breaths. With your imagination, allow the warmth of your heart to extend down your arms and into your hands. Now place your hands on your heart and feel the warmth and weight of your hands here. When you’re ready, move your hands to other places on your body that could use a little softening or holding. Your forehead, the back of your neck, the curve of your cheek, on your diaphragm right below your ribcage, your hips, your feet, etc!

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After I was attuned in Reiki, I’d find myself waking up in the morning with one hand on my heart and one hand on my solar plexus. It has become my favorite way to give myself a little extra love when I need it in the morning.

You can also use this technique to send your plants some love, to infuse your drinking water with intention, or bless the nutrients in your food before you eat. You just need the intention of your focus and the goodness in your heart!

Tomorrow is a FULL MOON, so I hope you find a moment to go outside and gaze at the big brightness in the sky (fingers crossed for no clouds!).

Sending lots of love to you from my warm hands to your warm heart!

March New Moon Check In

On Tuesday, we had a new moon and sloooooowly it’s becoming more of a crescent in the sky as the days pass by.

While this time feels surreal and I keep riding the waves of feeling super grounded and inspired to feeling stressed and anxious, it’s still new moon time. It’s still the beginning of spring. And with all that’s going on, I’m also aware of the abundance of HUGE creative energy surrounding us. I see how folks are adapting, helping, re-working, connecting, and creating despite all the limitations upon us. People making masks, playing music, donating offerings/healing/time, sharing resources, even the hilarious memes and videos that have me cracking up.

This isn’t to discount how really hard this situation is for a lot of people. To be out of work, away from their loved ones, not being able to have that human touch. AND we get to see what new things and ways of being will come forward.

My gratitude for this new moon time is for the creativity and kindness of humans. For the technology that keeps us connected. For nature that keeps us grounded. And for our big hearts that hope, grieve, dream, and love.

There are a lot of amazing resources out there on the interwebs to help you navigate this time (workouts, meditations, breathwork, group hang-outs, virtual craft dates, etc), so I hope you find some things that support you and keep you feeling connected.

Routines and Basketball

My man and I split season tickets to games for both the men and women Gopher basketball teams at the U of M and, on Sunday, we enjoyed our last game of this season. Having grown up in a basketball-loving family and being a player myself back in the day, this tradition of cheering on college basketball with my husband has been so much fun.

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We tend to arrive at the games early, which gives us time to observe the warm-up routine on the court before tip off. It very meditative how the team would move from stretching, to shooting, to working with a trainer/strength coach, to high-fiving each other. Going through the motions of the routine that helps them get their head and body in the game.

These little pre-game rituals continue throughout the game: cleaning their sneaks before they enter into the game, prep for a free throw, coming out of a time-out.

My favorite is the free throw prep. Most players have some sort of thing they do each time they are at the free throw line before they take the shot: couple dribbles, set the feet, look at the hoop, deep breath, shoot.

It got me thinking about those little routines and rituals WE do during our day to day - those little actions that add a little something extra and something special. Those little things done with intention that are touchstones for the meaning in our lives. That help us get our heads and bodies in the game of our day.

Like, wearing your favorite pair of underwear when you have an important day, morning meditations, sipping a warm beverage of choice at sunrise, kissing your loves goodbye as you leave for the day, that specific song to belt to on your commute or your favorite jams for your workout, what you do when you first arrive home or when you have a big decision to make, lighting a candle before dinner, evening gratitudes and prayers, etc, etc, etc.

What are some of those routines that give you structure and solace? How can you add in more moments of intention to help you feel grounded and supported in your day? Where might you need a little extra anchor over the course of your day?

As I was washing my hands last night, I looked up at my reflection and looking in my own eyes I thought: what if while we wash our hands for twenty seconds, we also take that time to look into our own eyes and tell ourselves how bad ass, brilliant, resilient, and lovable we are? This would be a great opportunity to take a mundane moment (and maybe even fear based task, considering the virus news going around) and turn it into an intentional practice of infusing our day with more love.

We just had a full moon last night, so my full moon wish for you is for you to take sweet care of yourself and that you find those routines and rituals that support your body, mind, spirit, and heart.

Put Into Motion: Waxing Moon Musings

Walking the pup on a couple of late afternoon and early evenings this week, I’ve caught glimpses of the moon in the blue sky and was excited to see that half-sphere look. The moon is in the waxing phase, getting bigger and bigger and brighter and brighter.

For us humans, it’s a great reminder to use momentum and to put in some aligned action towards living a life that feels like ours.

With the full moon happening this weekend, what can you put into motion in the next handful of days? What steps can you take that make your 2020 intentions more of a reality.

Can you schedule that appointment, make that coffee date, set up the limits of screen time on your phone?

Would it feel good to open that journal, crack that cover of the book next to your bed, share your idea with a brainstorming partner, or organize your office?

How about being more protective of your sleep or more aware of where you place your attention and focus during the “down time” of your day?

I also pose these questions with a reminder that they are not meant to guilt or add stress to your life, but to add Life to your life. To add in more sprinkles of what you love into your day to day. In a world where we are already super busy and productivity is seen as more valuable than rest, remember to choose your actions (and REST IS AN ACTION!) with compassion for yourself.

My action for me this week is to share my upcoming collaboration with a college friend and #bosslady Brett Dorrian Benedict: Book Club + Breathwork! These will be twice monthly gatherings on Tuesday evenings in NE Mpls that pairs books and discussion with breathwork. It’s a great way to gather in community for reflection and blooming together through all the growing pains and delight that comes from doing personal development work and/or building a business/owning your craft.

What I love about this new offering:

• It’s an invitation to come back to reading books. It’s something I’ve loved since summers growing up when we’d head to the library and, in the age of social media, I’ve gotten away from reading.

• Come just to Book Club, just to Breathwork, or come to both! Book club is free, so it’s a great way to get some support and to meet some new people.

• This breathwork is offered on a weeknight! Not everyone can come to a Friday night class or a Sunday workshop (when I usually host events), so this gives you the chance to catch a group during the week if you’ve been wanting to.

• The books will naturally give us themes to work on, so we’ll take the book material and then breathe with it to get clarity around next steps and to integrate the information that resonates with us into our bodies and our lives.

All the details are on the events on my website and Brett’s picked the list of books for the year, so you can peruse the titles and see what calls to you. And let me know if you have any questions! I’m excited about this new adventure.

Here’s to movement and momentum this cycle that feels fulfilling, aligned, and fun! xo