Summer 2019
- What are 2 highlights from the summer? What are 2 moments in your mind, your heart, your memory that come to mind that you want to hold on to?
In the beginning of the summer, we went to CT to visit my Grandma and there was this moment on a late afternoon walk where they found a huge grassy hill and they both went rolling down it. My other family members had walked on ahead of us, and I just stood there. Alone. Watching them roll and laugh and just be kids. It was magic. No rush. No where to go, nothing else to do but just be.
Towards the end of the summer, we went on an overnight trip to Lewes Delaware. We were staying in a cute motel and it was getting late, before bed the kids said, “ we’re hungry!” and Mel and I looked at each other and said, “put your shoes on!” It was already dark out and we went into the town and they got pizza and we wandered the night streets. It was such a fun night b/c it was so out of our normal routine for this summer. Exploring at night, having late night pizza and just having FUN as a family.
One other thing I don’t want to forget is that at the end of June, we went to VA to help teach at the IMCW family retreat and we did not stay on the property, we stayed at a magical AIRBNB 20 minutes away. Each evening, I would drive ( usually alone) back to our apartment from the retreat center and there would be the most incredible sunset. I would open ALL the windows and sunroof, I would put on my alignment mix and I would sing and put my arm out the window and open my fingers and feel all the air and breeze and think “ THIS IS THE GOOD LIFE. This is magic. I am alive. I AM ALIVE!” I did this for 4 nights. So good.
2. What were 2 things that sucked or kind- of -sucked? What were 2 bad days or moments that occurred? We don’t need or want to dwell on them, but we don’t want to recognize them.
Milo had some tough times emotionally and with anxiety. We tried CBT. This type of therapy is not working to help him. We spent a good part of the summer meeting therapists and trying to see if this would help him. He had difficulty with new camps and I questioned best approaches for him moving forward. I spent a lot of the summer reading books, listening to podcasts and having my own experience so I can figure out how to best help him moving forward.
It was also tough for me b/c I spent most of the summer home and sticking to a schedule of doing nothing and home time in order to provide a foundation of health and rest and security for him. Overall, I think this was great for him but uncomfortable for me. I noticed I wanted to be doing more or seeing people and just being more involved in community or travel or something other than sitting and staring at legos every afternoon for hours. We have made it through and there was a lot of sweetness to balance the episodes of stress an anxiety but I do feel like I’m in a whole new parenting world/ stage and there’s a lot to learn. I found this book which has been super helpful.
3. What self- care practices felt really good? Swimming. Rose Water. Pitta Oil Cucumber Salads. Reading Fiction.
4. Take out your calendar for JUNE 1, 2020 and write down the top 3 things you want to remember/ remind yourself of/ to bring/add/subtract for next summer. We have a tendency to fly through seasons without any awareness at all- so to bring attention to Summer 2020- write yourself a little note of reminders and encouragement NOW- so that when you get to June 1, 2020- you have that support. Your future self thanks you.
Dear P,
This was a summer of strength and surrendor. You showed up, you stayed in the moment, you were present with the unfolding of the beauty and the challenges. It was not always easy. There were fiery moments filled with emotion and rage and fear. It was an intense summer physically, emotionally, spiritually. Huge shifts in your family relationships felt like holding on to a ledge with no net, no solid ground, no foundation, nothing to stand on, until, you realized you could stand on your own. Summer 2019 started with a tragic murder -suicide that brought profound sadness on many layers and levels. You chose to have a lot of space in the schedule, prioritize relax time and to be home {a lot}, in order to help Milo feel secure and stable. You read so much, you learned so much about Ayurveda in Shakti School. You went in the woods to write on your own, you sang kirtan, circled with women in LOLA and Summer School -all to replenish your soul. You found profound comfort and discomfort in the stillness, in the tiny tiny moments. You deepened relationships with extraordinary people and you wrote page after page in your journal. You experienced life as it is. Remember the fire can build inside of you, causing shortness of communication, intensity with feelings and just generally not the season you are most at ease and feeling in balance — that’s okay, it’s part of the pitta nature to feel that. relax into it. Let it be part of who you are and continue to work WITH it, not against it. The passion for planning, leading and creating is part of your super power, work with all the elements to live in harmony.
