Rightsizing the Boat ⛵
Rightsizing the Boat
Hello friends,
I've been thinking a lot about rest lately. Winter. Hibernation. Maybe it's partly the season. At a functional level, I notice my body needs more hours of sleep this time of year.
A few weeks ago, I went to a Getaway Cabin--the ones you may have seen advertised on Instagram if your algorithm is anything like mine. It was a small, cozy space with an enormous window looking out over the trees and a carefully designed kitchen and bathroom all arranged within less than 200 square feet.
There's not much wifi, if any, a radio, a lockbox for your phone, s'mores supplies, and some books.
The afternoon we arrived I sat by the fire outside and paged through Walden by Henry David Thoreau. I loved the concept and book growing up just 30 miles or so away from where he lived in the woods. Now I'm a little less taken with the man--the fact that his mother supplied him with food and did his laundry at the pond made me question why I never heard him give her credit, though its also likely time has imposed certain concepts on a man who was ultimately a flawed human, heavily influenced by his contemporary society even in the woods (more here).
Nonetheless, his words still hold up in parts. In particular there was a line that caught my attention, something about the tension between making a living and living itself.
I wrote a short poem and left it at the cabin after the weekend:
Being, not doing
Rightsizing the boat
Starboard--to make a living
Port--to live.
In my yoga classes, I often talk about how savasana (the final resting pose or corpse pose) is crucial to the practice because it allows the body to integrate everything from the physical, mental, and emotional practice. Like dreaming in the night as your brain makes sense of your waking hours.
The idea of rest as an integral part of living isn't something we're comfortable with in U.S. culture and it takes time and conscious, rebellious attention to reclaim this part of our humanity and natural cycles. With the world of social media, we are not limited to reading the words of men like Thoreau. We can also be educated by Black Liberation Theologists like Tricia Hersey of The Nap Ministry and others.
As Alecia Dawn Young says on the podcast this week, it's about learning to listen to signals from our body and soul.
We can get more in touch, overtime, with healthy patterns that make space for rest.
Wishing that and more for you this wintery month.
Take care,
Resources from Rachel
Payment-Optional Online Yoga
Remote, 30-minute yoga classes continue with Yoga U Pgh on Tuesdays and Wednesdays each week at 7:30 a.m. EST.
These classes are payment-optional. You can email me directly to get the link to join!
**Note: The week of February 15th, classes will be on Wednesday and Thursday instead.**
Mars Rover Updates!
I picked February 4th as the publication date for my book Spirit and Oppy because it was exactly two weeks before the newest Mars rover Perseverance is scheduled to land on Mars this Thursday, February 18th.
If you're interested in the rovers, you can...
Watch the Perseverance landing free here on Thursday!
Listen to this episode of The Dance Floor where I was recently a guest and talk about the new rover.
Order your copy of Spirit and Oppy wherever you get your books.
This photo is at Riverstone Books--the first bookstore where I've seen my book shelved!
Alecia Dawn Young & Anna Harsh
The first two episodes of season two of Paradoxia are almost here!
The first episode with Alecia Dawn Young is about creativity as a wellness practice. Alecia talks about her experience starting her own company, YOGAMOTIF, that hosts yoga paint parties and integrates yoga, wellness, body awareness, and joy particularly for black women who are pregnant.
The second episode with Anna Harsh is about her process of starting Allegro Dance Company as one of only a few companies in the U.S. focused on traditional Italian dance. It will be available to stream tomorrow!
Rachel's Recommendations
Hi, Are You Single?
You may know Ryan Haddad from the Netflix series, The Politician. Or, like me, you may know him from Ohio Wesleyan University in the early 2010s where he first wrote his one-man show "Hi, Are You Single?"
For the month of February, you can purchase a ticket to stream his show. I did and can't recommend it highly enough. Simply put, he's brilliant and fabulous. Through anecdotes, stories, and reflections Ryan shares his experience as a gay man with cerebral palsy.
It was hilarious and beautiful and moving at the intersection of sexuality and disability. And it almost felt like being back in the theater again.
*Note: adult content
The Nap Ministry
If you're not already, I highly recommend following The Nap Ministry on Twitter and Instagram. Founded in 2016 by Tricia Hersey and based on Black Liberation Theology, The Nap Ministry does performance art pieces, community organizing, and leverages social media to call out "the grind" of capitalism and white supremacy by shining a spotlight on rest.
It may sound odd, and as someone who used to refuse to take naps and say things like "I'll sleep when I'm dead," I'm relearning and listening to my own need for rest. This takes it a step further to connect the personal and political act of resting as an act of resistance and reclamation of humanity, particularly for Black Americans.
Got a Meeting? Take a Walk
Nilofer Merchant gave her Ted Talk a few years ago coining the phrase "sitting is the new smoking." The essence of the 3-minute talk is that we can make time to get outside, move our bodies, and get our ideas flowing in new ways, by building walking meetings into our schedules.
Nilofer does walking meetings with mentees, or did when the world was open. I've been trying to integrate this into my work week for brainstorming or social meetings with friends and colleagues. I don't even notice the cold and it gives me some fresh perspective and my body some TLC.
Write to Be Trivia
Next Sunday, February 21st, Write to Be is hosting a virtual trivia from 7:15 - 8:30pm EST. This is a fundraiser for the Fi Ki Fo (strong girl) and Famn Ki Fo (strong woman) programs in Haiti.
Today is the last day to register!
It's a great cause, with fundraised money going directly to the Haitian women who lead our program for girls and to put cash in the hands of women and girls who need it. You can register here (join my team: Les Quizerables or make your own!). There's a suggsted donation fo $35 per person but you can make whatever contribution feels meaningful to you.