freaky friday
hi friends,
This newsletter was supposed to be all about Taylor Swift but ever since our trip to the Meadowlands, it's been a little bit like freaky Friday around here. John's been working out to Fearless, and I've been listening to podcasts breaking down the NBA Finals. He's a secret Swiftie, and I've become obsessed with Heat Culture.
Perhaps I should explain.
The Heat have blown up the Eastern Conference, busting brackets like no other team. They have ridden their 3% statistical chance all the way to the Finals, and yes, I've watched almost every game. No matter how many times people count them out, they chip away and find their way to win.
In other words, they've had a marvelous time ruining everything.
So why do I love the Heat? It begins with these guys: Jimmy Buckets; my favorite former Raptor, Kyle Lowry; and that kid from York, Maine, who hits all the threes, Duncan Robinson.
However, what intrigues me the most about the team is their intentional scouting of undrafted players, currently SEVEN on the Finals roster. In a business that banks on sure things, that is insane. But not to the Heat.
Heat culture is about identifying potential and allowing that person to develop, grow, learn, and trust in their own game. Simply by advancing to the Finals, the Heat are already a success. In Sanskrit, the word is Siddhi. Accomplished.
And that's what makes the team so lovable, scrappy, and relatable because I ask you to raise your hand if you've ever felt like an undrafted player. I know I have—it's how I've shown up and lived my entire life. Yet, certain people were occasionally willing to take a chance on me. Even better, sometimes, I became willing to take a chance on myself. To look in the mirror and believe I was already a success. To become fearless and say, Baby let the games begin.
Recently, I heard someone say they had decided to turn the face of their watch over and write "now" in black Sharpie on the other side. I love that.
Because now is what it's all about. It's all any of us ever have. Which brings me back to Taylor Swift. Sometimes now is the decision to go to a concert, to do something insanely extravagant and reckless on paper, but something I equally knew I would never regret. And I don't, not for a single second. Because I don’t know how it gets better than this.
What is it you want to do right now? What are you the most passionate about? What do you wish to explore?
This morning I'm taking the boat to Monhegan. To be with these questions and to trust in the answers that arise. Perhaps you'll want to join me on this adventure or create one of your own.
Don’t wait, or say a single vow
Your time is running out
And they said, “Speak now”
thanks for reading ~
PS Yes, I know the Heat lost last night, but don't count them out because they might just be your end game.
When Women Were Birds: murmuration, memoir, meditation
September 22 - 26, 2023
Monhegan, ME
word by word, the language of women so often begins with a whisper… . .
join me this fall!
If you have ever wished to experience Monhegan, this retreat is your invitation. It’s an embodied book group: to journey and journal through the words of Terry Tempest Williams's poetic memoir When Women Were Birds: Fifty-four Variations on Voice with the seasons of the sea. It is for anyone who longs to learn or return to the practices of writing and meditation, to discover our stories through silence and speech. all the details • 2022 retreat highlights here
I felt like the bright, salty sunshine and air of Monhegan scrubbed the corners of my soul, and I saw all the cracks and creases and also cleaned the gunk that needed to be moved. It was a deeply satisfying and nourishing experience. I feel like my personal bucket as a woman, mom, midwife, and human became filled to the brim with trust that we can have hard times and find meaningful ways to re-visit reintegrate into ourselves when the opportunity presents itself—Elsa, Philadelphia, PA, 2021 + 2022 retreater
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