[English Version] Expansion

How do we live happily?

My mum often writes to me, “I just want you to always be happy.”
And I try to tell her, it’s not possible to be happy all the time. And that’s okay. We are happy in certain moments, but those moments pass, like everything, and then they return. We are in constant transformation, and emotions, like clouds, move, they are not still. There is light and there is darkness. Without sadness, there would be no happiness. Yin and Yang. We all know this. The real secret is learning to be at ease with all emotions, not becoming too attached to any of them, but understanding that each one is essential for our evolution. To learn how to observe them. Just like clouds passing by.

Our intelligence, in living a more harmonious life, lies in understanding how to move from one feeling to another. Being happy is a choice, seeing the glass as half full is a choice too. For example, I know that joy, that thrill, comes when I imagine something exciting in my life, when I create. In terms of place, time, space. When I have visions, intuitions, they become my goals, my next projects, the ones that allow me to expand.
And I act to reach those goals, painting my own journey. And this happens due to my true connections or channeling that happens in my life.

Sadness often shows up when we feel disappointed, because of our expectations. We meet someone who attracts us, and then what we hoped for doesn’t happen. But if that person resonates with us, if we feel something, why not look at the bigger picture?
What is behind that call? I believe people come into our lives to help us evolve, all of them. To help us expand. And the ones I let go of are the ones that limit me.
When someone tries to clip my wings, or put boundaries around me, I start to feel tight. So I pause, and I observe. I am a free spirit “untamable,” as my natal chart says

It happened to me in work as well: when I was working as a stylist for SportWeek and my boss questioned every idea I had, I felt anger and frustration. Then, by moving to Portugal, I found a way to create something new and express my ideas freely → an identity that reinvents itself. The Wild Production. But I had to let go of a lot, because choosing to live a free but happy life means living with courage. (I talked about it here ).

- In Perth, I found a book written by Christy Turlington about how to live a yogic life.
She and I shot a campaign together when I was five — I didn’t know she was a yogi. She is, above all, a wonderful woman. And now I understand why we were meant to meet. -

Then you learn that letting go is, above all, an act of altruism, not ego.
By choosing to follow your own path, you do good for yourself, and for the world. Whereas continuing to people please leads to the opposite: you don’t evolve, you stay stuck, and you only attract energies and people that don’t support your growth. When someone strikes me, even if there isn’t the reciprocity I initially hope for, when something unexpected happens, I choose to go beyond and see something else -
like Ganesha teaching us to turn obstacles into opportunities. You might feel sad or disappointed at first, but if you look at things from another perspective — the one of your evolution, then everything transforms. Sadness, or anger, that moment of “What?!” becomes curiosity… So what? What now? Be curious, because the Universe is guiding you back to the right path. Because even along the path I have imagined, obstacles can arise, but we need to know how to accept them.

Reading this again from Perth, a few days later, and looking at this picture I’ve posted below, it feels perfectly aligned with this moment: here is a storm - and here it almost never rains. I had planned to stay for a concert, and it was cancelled.
Well… let’s see what this unexpected turn will bring me.

At first, I thought this attitude was a way to keep people or situations in my life.
But now I understand it’s not. If I feel a vibration, it’s because I know it will help me expand and create something beautiful. “We are the beauty way.”
We sang it at Prema’s Kirtan a few days ago. Bringing beauty is a gift, maybe one we all have, but not everyone allows themselves to express. And that’s a pity. I feel I was born to live in beauty and harmony, to create and share beauty (I’m a Libra, sorry). Even when there are people who try to pull me into their darkness, I am naturally drawn to see and seek beauty, always.

Waking up in Bali, in a home full of color, nature, light, and harmony, has been the result of years of change and action, of letting go of things and people. And of consistently returning to a place that made me feel good, even if it’s 16 hours away from my country of origin. And phrases like “She can,” “She’s lucky”… don’t affect me anymore. I can because I choose to. Of course I am lucky, just for where I was born, I am. For my family, my roots, and for having a passport that allows me to be almost anywhere in the world, unlike other nationalities. I am deeply, endlessly grateful for this. But this is a privilege I don’t hold alone. And yet, many people don’t see it, and continue living a life they wouldn’t choose. And I ask myself why. I know everything could change from one day to the next. And I live this way because of that.

But the more I choose to create my own luck, the more I feel able to face obstacles. That’s why there isn’t a single day in my life where I don’t reflect on my feelings and my choices, understanding what I need to do to stay centered and not lose clarity. And this is constant work, one that requires the courage to truly look within, all the way.

I was just talking about this with a guy I had a very “Ubudian” moment with (at Sayuri, of course): a long, intense eye contact - we looked into each other’s eyes for a while, without looking away. - In that moment, we connected in some way,
and in his blue eyes I saw a lot of hope and tenderness. (Through him, Ronaldo came into my life (my cat), and that’s the reason why we met.) He came to open up, unsure about what to do with someone he had just started seeing. He felt torn, because he knew that, as much as he liked her, she was pulling him away from his goals. I’m glad I helped him arrive at what he already knew, to reconnect with his intuition. Staying centered, when you are clear on what you want, brings you back to the right path.

And even when you’re not. Pause. Meditate, practice, run, paint. There are so many ways to reconnect with yourself.

This is also why I live in Ubud.

Coming back to happiness, to expansion. When I see my ideas come to life, and people are happy, I feel happy too. Like Saraswati, who helps Brahma create the world.
Her children are her creations. I always say this when I teach the Mandala class dedicated to her. She is my favorite goddess. The goddess of wisdom, arts, creativity, the goddess of water.

La Comune Indah 101, my home in Bali, was once a vision that became real.
Watching different people come and go, creating new memories and experiences each time, feels like a painting in constant evolution. And the idea of sharing my home with others - that is expansion. Letting strangers live in my apartment in Milan, allowing them to experience a phase of their life within my walls - that is expansion. Having connections all over the world, and not feeling bound by geographical borders - that is expansion. I am in Perth with people I met through Bali, of course,
but until recently, I would have never imagined coming to Australia - Expansion. Detaching from your place of origin, and from your family patterns - that is expansion.

My perspective on relationships has also changed a lot over the years, in this sense (I had already written about it here). The limitation, and I do see it as a limitation, of having only one partner with whom to share life, I had already moved beyond some time ago. Probably since I broke up in 2016 with my ex-partner, with whom I could have had a life already written, beautiful for some, but one that wouldn’t have allowed me to become who I am today.

From that moment, I began to expand,
to see the world and relationships from a different perspective. I believe in love, in the feeling itself, which can be directed more toward one person than another,
because someone may complete us more than others. But for me, love is also something much wider. It must include each person’s personal growth, not limit it.

This can also mean loving different people in different ways,
in different places, at different times. Finding meaning in each connection,
understanding its purpose in our personal evolution. It’s not easy to understand,
but the more I connect with open people, the more I see evolution.

Being closed and possessive is a limitation, and it can make us unhappy.

Being open allows us to expand, also in relationships.

I’m drawn to people who have something to teach me,
whose minds are bright, and in whom I find meaning and nourishment for my path.

For example, today I felt that spark again, talking with Fede. He invited me to his contact improv class, and while I was watching him speak, I thought, “I would love to bring this experience to the girls in my retreats.” So today I proposed it to him, and I saw that same light in him too. And now, we’ll see how things evolve, and I already have something else in mind with another person I recently met. This is how it begins.

When I connect with people, intuitions come, and I try to manifest them. I deeply believe in co-creation, and I believe I have the ability to see how other people’s qualities can support my evolution and keep me connected to my dharma.

The love and respect I’ve felt for the people I’ve created my projects with - retreats, shoots, sports content - have always been genuine. And through those feelings, ideas and visions have come to me. At the same time, when they fade, it’s time to change,
and to wait for something new to arrive. I’ve also realized that within this love and respect I invest, some people have taken advantage of me (my healer has always told me this too). Probably because I open my heart a lot, and I tend to see the positive in people, rarely the negative.

But there are those who use someone else’s light to illuminate their own darkness. And it doesn’t work like that. Everyone has to face their own demons.
The light has to be found within oneself, and only then can we walk side by side.

When I realize it, when something happens that goes against my values, when I am not respected, I wake up, and I step away. I know it’s time to change direction.
I know I need to come back to center and wait for the Universe to bring me people
who vibrate on the same frequency. Because I know they will come.

To create from a place of flow, that happens naturally when you are aligned,
even if it means reinventing myself, again and again.

And with the new year - I mean the Chinese one - I feel that many things are unfolding. The Year of the Horse is a year of action. After the transformation of the Year of the Snake, we shed the skin that no longer belongs to us and step into who we are, and into our abilities. To expand also means having the awareness to understand when things need to change — or come to an end.
And to know how to reinvent ourselves. Specifically, by spending more and more time in Bali, in the home I manifested, with a cat that chose me, and living a life I feel grateful for every single day, new doors have opened as others have closed.

My routine with the running club made me realize that the reason I wake up at 5:50, three times a week, is not only for my health - but because I’m surrounded by people I feel aligned with. Free, yet grounded and centered.

Runners are resilient. They don’t give up. They have focus, they have a goal,
and even if it takes time and effort, they get there.

So now, together with two friends from the running club,
I’m becoming part of a project in Ubud, a Run Café. It resonates with me because I love communities (and ours is special), because I’ve always been a runner (I’ve run two marathons), because I come from years of working on sportswear projects,
and because I love connecting people and experiences. And… because I’m the Matcha Police ;)

This place could become a wellness hub for runners, yogis, and athletes here in Ubud,
and I feel I have so much to contribute. And this is something new for me

Today is Nyepi, the first day of the year in Bali. I remember, during the lockdown five years ago, from my room in Milan, watching what was happening here on this special day, a day when everything stops.

Flights don’t depart, people stay at home in introspection,
so that evil spirits believe the island is deserted and pass over it without stopping,
allowing Bali to begin the year with a new, pure energy. And today, six years later, I am here. Painting my canvas, almost finished.

I would have never imagined returning to painting (the last time was in high school),
and I love it - the painting itself is a journey, constantly evolving. I’ve created my own corner in front of my room, like a small studio, an atelier.

I hope to experience many more Nyepi like this, painting.

I will continue with yoga and retreats, because it is my dharma, and what I learn, I want to share. I want to help people find their own path and create new connections. But I will also support others in organizing their own retreats here.
It’s already happening with a friend I met in Bali, who lives in New York —
and this, too, is something new. Ah, and in two days I’m going to Perth.
(This newsletter moves through time, as always.) I’ve never been to Australia.
They say you should go somewhere you’ve never been at least once a year. Well, Australia never really called me, and yet, over the years, I’ve met so many people who live there, and they all carry such a beautiful energy. I’m curious to finally step onto that land. I’ll be hosted by Danae, a girl I met in Ischia when I assisted Anouk’s retreat with 40 Australians. We connected because she has a beautiful energy, and a very kind heart. Together, we’ll offer a Yoga and Sound Healing class in Perth.
Who would have ever imagined that?

To close, while surfing in Balangan last October, I met a girl who works for Club Med,
and she asked me if I’d like to go to the Maldives in April to teach yoga for ten days.

What can I say, the Year of the Horse has started at a trot. And me,
I expand.