Let’s assume we are all apart of this great tapestry woven together. Each of us occupying a unique place but interconnected. Who and what are you connected to? Do you want more of that connection or less? Can you find gratitude for your place in the connection or is it time to focus somewhere else?

Boredom isn’t bad. Instead of immediately seeking distractions when feeling bored, take time to sit with boredom as you would a friend. Use your curiosity to delve into the discomfort. Can you uncover any insights boredom offers about yourself and your emotional state?

All cultures develop through ways of listening.

Deep Listening is listening in every possible way, to everything it’s possible to hear, no matter what you are doing.

-Pauline Oliveros

Use any kind of paint and paper to play with shapes. Explore the beauty of not knowing. What will come when you don’t have to have a plan or agenda?

Let your breath be an emotional flashlight. Start at your toes, shining your breath in all the nooks and crannies of your body as you make your way to your head. Note any sensations you find and try to let your awareness couple those sensations with emotions.

The sky is a never-ending source of inspiration. The next time you find a sky that moves you, notice how you experience it. Is it how you think about its beauty? Or how you feel the colors in your body? Notice the quality of your sensations and thoughts. Write some of it down or dance it out. Let awe be your motivation.

Ever touched some thing that filled you with disgust? How about deep pleasure? Check out the next piece of wood or the bag of beans in your cupboard. Find the words to describe what you feel.

Consider the “touch” of light. It can be harsh, gentle, opaque, sensuous, or illuminating. Notice how it shapes your perspective or feelings when you focus on how it’s lighting something rather than on the thing it’s lighting.

Chaos is constant. We navigate it all the time by focusing. Notice how you manage chaos. Do you lean on your device to soothe? Do you go on walks or numb yourself with distractions? Do you make time to connect with people you love? What happens if you try a new approach instead of whatever the one is that leaves you feeling overwhelmed?

Oxalis, or sweetgrass, is a flower that grows abundantly in San Francisco. Pick one and chew the stem. Notice where the tart crispness lands on your palate.

Next time you pass a flower, take a moment to notice the pistil in the center. As you take it in, notice how and where you feel the experience in your body. Write at least three sentences to describe it.

The Light Date

Take yourself on a date with light. Use any medium you want to capture the way light in all its varied ways impacts or moves you.

Gratitude for the Little Things

Find a couple minutes in your day to take 5 slow breaths. On the inhale, first thought best thought here, send thanks to someone or something that brought you joy. On the exhale send love there.

Organize a space with curiosity and care. Pick up an item you want to put away. Take a deep breath through your nose and ask what this object means to you. On the exhale give it thanks for its purpose. If you find it has none pass on to someone else. 

watercolor and ink on paper, 2022

This first sentence from the preface of The Right to Sex by Amia Srinivasan is beautiful and halting in it’s simplicity. Yeah, let us try and see!

watercolor and ink on paper, 2022

There it is a gentle

moving between.

light bouncing

between us.

Exploring the incredibly varied and beautiful sounds of the Organelle from Critter & Guitari

watercolor and ink on paper, 2021

growing, where seemingly we cannot, we always will. and as simple as that, there we are.

Linen is made from the flax fibers…prehistoric hunter-gatherers were making cords for hafting stone tools, weaving baskets, or sewing garments 30,000 years ago.

“There is literally no waste as each part of the plant has its purpose.”

From EXTRACTING FLAX FIBERS: The Linen Craft by Libeco

“Eartha Kitt with students at the Harlem, YMCA 1955” from the New York Times article by Sandra Garcia “The Visionary Community of the Harlem Y.M.C.A.