ritual acts of care
Can you be with whatever is arising in your body without making it wrong? Maybe call on the support of that which is bigger than you (the earth, ancestors, spirit) to help you in this holding. If it feels right, lay down on the earth, light a candle, place your hand on your heart, or ask for the support of a loved one. All of this is ritual.
learning to fly
One evening, he wheeled the "Desert Rose," out of our garage. We made our way to the middle of our quiet street and he steadied my new ride, while I perched myself on its banana seat between pedals that seemed impossibly far away.
why i wrote a book
Decolonizing the body hits bookshelves on March 1. It is my story -- but it’s also a guide to unhook from internalized feelings of “less than,” a celebration of all bodies and a reminder that the body is our portal to spirit, ancestors, ritual and deep time, so you can use it too.
an invitation to holding complexity
Because thanksgiving is holiday that's rooted in a painful history, we may focus only on what is wrong with it. We feel judgement of those who celebrate, or guilt about our own desire to participate. I believe this day is really about learning to hold complexity.
why i care
I believe your body holds wisdom that is essential for creating the world we all deserve to live in – you know, where no one must hustle or compete to meet their basic needs, where all bodies are deemed valuable and every being has ample space for rest and ease. My intention is not that this sounds like a lot of pressure, but I do get it if holding such power makes you feel a little anxious.
to be held
This past weekend, I went to the InterPlay studio in Oakland where so many years ago I began the journey of coming back to my body. In this place, that at one time was a regular part of my day to day, I remembered how important it is to let one's self be held.
braving the spiral
For several weeks now an injury has kept me from moving my body in the ways I like to move. I'm not able to sweat, or jump or engage in any kind of vigorous activity.
I'm noticing my body is softer -- my breasts more full, my belly more round -- and I'm uncomfortable that this has made me uncomfortable.
practice: re-meeting your body
Sometimes it feels like our bodies don’t quite fit. They don’t move how we move. They don’t look or we look. It’s as though we’re buried in a sumo suit of flesh and emotions that don’t accurately reflect who we really are. The real you is less messy, more grounded, less anxious and more confident. The real you is comfortable in her own skin.
success is
We can find the peace we seek when we see there is no there there. When we reach that pinnacle of achievement, when the accolades flood, the applause roars and the dollars pile, the whispers of doubt and fear do not cease. There is story after story after story of this. So, what then? We learn to be with these inconvenient feelings. We feel our sensitivity, entertain that we’re a failure, let our over-active mind tumble us toward every worst-case scenario, and then we breathe.