New Moon, New Year, refined me.
Here we go Dear Ones, another ending. A new beginning. A deep INHALE and the slowest EXHALE….”the only way to hold on, is to keep letting go…” -Nick Mulvey, “meet me there”.
I have been spending a majority of my time weaving, mending and stitching…not just threads and fabric…life itself. I had a craving to use my hands to stitch and mend textiles. My ears wanted to hear the sounds of thread poking through muslin, feel the tension, see the fibers interconnectedness.CONNECT. With myself, my ancestors, my heart, my soul, my hands, my God, my kids, ,my fears, my regrets, my failures, my wishes, my hopes, my intentions, my prayers for others…I just craved quiet, stillness and the rhythm of the thread in and out, weaving and planting seeds of possibilities.
I think a lot about working with my hands and how they are an extension of my heart, my soul. Through them I express care, love and intention. HANDS ARE the tool that we manifest our inner world into REALITY. This idea resonates deeply with my friends who are mothers during the Holidays. We juggle the dual roles of holding space for our family and traditions while also learning to let go as children and circumstances change.
This paradox of holding by letting go can be challenging. It’s about finding balance-acknowledging the importance of connection while also understanding true connection often requires gentle release. It’s in the things we TOUCH, the care we give, and the intentions that we set that these connections flourish.
In this way, life becomes a process of creating recipes for enchantment. By putting our ATTENTION and INTENTION into the small, everyday acts, we craft a life that is not only beautiful but also deeply meaningful. it’s about being present and finding beauty in the mundane.
That’s what I have been doing. Making connections, with my heart, through my hands. Stitching new seeds of possibility and mending the bursted seams. I literally have been stitching on little squares of fabric I dyed last year. This idea of following, my intuition as a process, has no real timeline.I follow my inner guidance til it feels like’s time to move on and then inevitably I will feel called back to the thing I worked on years ago. This is the natural way. The natural rhythm of my work. I am trusting it more and more. I trust it more when I silence the outter world.
This year, will be the year I DIVE SO DEEP into my own ways. Leaving behind, influence and trends. I just simply can’t anymore. At least for now. My nervous system simply won’t allow it.
My work will be different. The way I work will be different. I have been contemplating deeply my VALUES and asking if they align with certain practices anymore. Such as social media. I don’t have all the answers, so I am contemplative. Right now I have taken a step back…to look and see. To listen deeply to myself for answers. I like to apply some Faith and look at natural laws as I navigate these questions and feel these pulls towards meaningful work and connection. Those are two values I hold dear. In a world where everyone is a BRAND…I’m curious about attraction rather than promotion. It will be a slower and more sustainable driven path…and hopefully more fulfilling and connected one as well.
I also want to support small businesses that are aligned with these values as well. I want to find hidden gems that aren’t found on the WORLD WIDE WEB. Like the sweet restaurant up the street. She make the best food and writes on her menu that her soup is “made from the heart”…yes, please.
I’ll be following my wild and tending to what I love with attention and care. I’ll be resourcing myself so that I have energy to give.
I’ll be taking long walks daily. Sometimes in the very cold rain. I’ll be listening to the sound of the water as puddles collect rain and then turn to streams that make new distinct sounds that I missed when I crammed pods in my ears. It creates delight and enchantment. I’ll think about the beliefs I carry and wonder if they’re mine. I’ll delight in the color of theleaves on this one tree has and the way the light hits it to make this salmony rust color. I want to recreate with paint, but already know it will be a fools journey. I will let it take my breath away and I will STAY. I will stay with it. Just like I stay with the stream that ran heavy as the rain came down. I will stay because I prepared. I am ready to receive it. I have taken the steps to enjoy simple pleasures. THEY ARE MORE THAN ENOUGH.
It is an act of rebellion in a world that wants to convince us we aren’t enough and we don’t have enough. What a big fat lie. WE ARE MAGIC. We are light filled beings. We just have to be reminded.By slowing down and listening. By communion with nature.By connecting with others in person. We are reminded of ourselves and what it is to be HUMAN.
“….oh, there’s a field, meet me there…out beyond rightness and wrong, meet me there…”
Happy New Year. Here’s to listening to the wind and adjusting our sails.
Much love,
L E S L I E