We are in that sweet liminal space between the first of January and the new moon marking the Lunar New Year. Over the years this has become my favorite soft, slow time, dreaming in the darkness time, and sacred seeds becoming deep in the earth time. My gift to you (and myself) is now a quiet inbox and nothing to launch on day 1.
Every trip around the sun I fall more in love with this fallow season, cultivating a much needed longer runway and gentle turn towards the next 365 days. Through years of sinking deeper into my own aligned rhythms and rituals, I now embrace how essential and necessary this time is, an invitation to a kind of stillness needed to integrate and alchemize everything we’ve just lived through before beginning again.
Remembering our inherent nature will always shows us the way. It is the man-made overculture that drives a pace that is not natural. Burn out is a systemic issue not an individual one, and slowness is a privilege not everyone is afforded. This is why tending and cultivating our collective understory is how we practice being and belonging inside of care. Systems will try to force us to fragment and forget how we are always interconnected.
This is what I am renewing my devotion to this year… living and loving our understory… as fully, wildly and beautifully as I can.
understory (n.)
the layer of plants that grow between the main canopy and the forest floor, well adapted to darker low-light conditions, playing a crucial interstitial role in the overall health and ecology of root systems and biodiversity of forest flora and fauna.
a new narrative with sublime subtext, we are writing together.
Follow along in real-time with my more personal wondering and writing, Notes From the Understory, in my Patreon Portal along with ongoing 5 Bodies practices for creativity, connection and care.
New Year’s Revolution Planner Party
Monday, January 19 at 4pm EST
Come to our first… slow and gentle… gathering of the year! I’ll be sharing a 5 Bodies practice to ease into the new year, prompts for tending Community Roots, Seeds and Soil in your Radicle Ritual Planner all year long, and creative inspiration to customize and make your planner your own! Download the free 2026 planner to print, here and join a Radicle Ritual tier (sliding scale, all access pricing) in my Patreon Portal for your invitation and link to the event!
I’m looking forward to circling and creating together for another heart-tending year <3
Collective Resources
channeling this vibe all winter long (above) art by Anisa Makhoul
unplug and connect, host or attend an event for International Analog Day created by Shannon Downey
different kinds of rest (similar to, and why we need the 5 Bodies Framework)
printable zine: 5 Bodies Framework for Collective Belonging
what we need ASAP
these modern (pink!) landscapes are singing to the soul
another way the micro and macro are always intertwined
a beautiful story of how individualism is just one perspective
One Hundred Stitches, One Hundred Villages at the MFA Boston (below)
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