Say No to Resolutions: 10 Experts Share How to Set Intentions for the New Year

Jen of Wander Free Wellness was featured in this round-up article by Rent.com.
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Say No to Resolutions: 10 Experts Share How To Set Intentions For The New Year
Written by Charlsie Niemec of Rent.com

It's that time of year again when the idea of New Year's resolutions suddenly becomes top of mind.

Before you get too carried away with making a New Years' resolution list for yourself, your family and your home, it's important to know that 54 percent of people fail to commit to their New Year resolutions past six months. If you're looking to make a mindful and permanent change, shift from making resolutions and instead, choose to set intentions for the new year.

Not sure how to set intentions for the new year? Listen to what these 10 experts have to say about intention setting and ways to intentionally dive into the new year.

1. Set the tone for 2022

"A resolution means to solve, which means you relate to what you are resolving as broken or needing fixing. Instead of a resolution, set intentions for the new year!" says clarity coach Abigail Gazda. "The most powerful way to set an intention is to speak into the experience you want to be having of yourself and life rather than the manifestation of a material thing."

2. Find magic in the mundane

“Create small rituals that help you find the beauty and magic in the mundane. This could look like a walk without your phone while being completely present to your surroundings, slowly making a cup of tea or coffee with full attention or savoring a meal without distraction," says Jen Wyatt, ritual facilitator and self-discovery guide at Wander Free Wellness. "When we focus fully on our senses, we arrive in the magic of the moment — and this creates a ripple effect of beauty, peace and positive change in our lives."

3. Consider current circumstances

"The goal of setting goals for 2022 is to make your life better than it was in 2021. To achieve this, stay aware of your current circumstances and the challenges you will face in the coming year. Being intentional and realistic will change your life!" says owner and writer of EverythingAbode.com, Rebecca Lauren.

4. Start with your values

“When I started to set intentions for the new year versus resolutions, I sat down and asked myself what was truly important in my life. Ask yourself what is truly important to you. Spending more time with family (without electronics) and getting out in nature together? Living a more sustainable life? Being more present and slowing down? Living a healthy lifestyle? Think about what you want to do more of in your life," says intentional living expert Lora Devries.

“Figure this out and set your intentions around this. It makes keeping your intentions easier and more natural as you embrace the lifestyle that is important to you!

5. Block time

“Set an intention to limit distractions in the new year. Try time blocking," says certified life coach Kamini Wood. "Time blocking involves dividing a period of time into smaller segments of blocks designed for specific tasks. You can use this time management technique to divide your working day or week into sections, address the tasks in a smaller time frame and do them with intention and attention. This can ensure limiting the distraction of jumping from one thing to another."

6. Leave time for reflection

"In order to make long-lasting, sustainable changes to your life, your intentions have to align with a higher purpose. If they don't, you'll lose momentum easily, or worse, throw yourself off track," says Erin from Female Mind Unleashed. “Spend some quality alone time reflecting on your big goals for the next year, five years, 10 years - then come up with actionable baby steps you can implement month-after-month in 2022."

7. Prioritize passion projects

“The best creative intention-setting tip I can give people wanting to make changes in their life in 2022 is to engage in something they are really passionate about," says Rebecca Crespo, the founder of Minimalism Made Simple. "It doesn't matter if it's something unheard of or something that many people have done before — the most important thing is that they are fully committed to it. Without this level of commitment, it is easy to lose interest over time or become unmotivated. That is why I think that to make the changes they want, they must get really excited about their new project."

"Additionally, it's important for people to set intentions for the new year while not expecting change to happen overnight. Change takes time and it's OK if it happens gradually — one step at a time. Just make sure you're always moving forward and growing. Also, don't get frustrated if you do not see results right away. If you keep trying, you will eventually succeed and that's all that matters."

8. Set intentions on a daily basis

"A great way to start the day is by setting intentions during your morning shower to focus your mind and attitude before juggling daily demands," says Amy Jo Szymanski from Intelligent Intentions. "First, start with quick gratitude shout out to the universe for the new day. Then, set simple intentions like making a conscious effort to choose patience with other drivers during your morning commute, not allowing any negative comments during the day to affect your mood or intentionally making time to destress with a walk."

“These techniques may sound super basic, but small daily micro-steps create self-awareness, help us develop positive communication styles and make space for self-love investments. Of course, daily intentions aren't intended as a "to-do" list. Daily intentions are in the present moment using the power of thought to guide your actions to the way you want to feel. And be received by others."

9. Write it, read it, repeat it

“Remember, when you set intentions for the new year, your intentions only work if you work on it. Make sure you get your intentions down on paper. Write out what you want and say it out loud, so you can hear and feel it deeply, says Jeff from Jefe Living. "Also, the words you choose are very important. Use language that puts your attention on what you want to happen. Use language that feels good, accurate, attainable and even a little scary (you gotta grow, right?)."

“The difference between an intention and a goal: an intention is something you embody and feel. A goal is something you take action towards. Your actions infuse with your intentions. Take as much time working with one intention until it feels really clear. This is often a messy process — welcome any resistance you feel and keep at it until you are completely satisfied. Lastly, make sure you write your intentions onto a piece of paper and put it somewhere you will see it every day. Every time you see your piece of paper, take a moment to say it out loud — nice and slowly. Repeat this action so often that it becomes second nature."

10. Opt for clarity

“Intentions don't need to be big accomplishments — sometimes they are internal shifts that we crave, desire or need, says certified therapist, Whitney Boole. Struggling with a relationship, a career choice or a tough decision? Set the intention to find clarity around it and that shift alone will pave the way to finding the clarity you need in the year ahead,"

Mindfulness matters

All in all, whether your intention is to redecorate your apartment, prep healthier meals at home, move across the country or do more yoga, know that if you go into the new year fully mindful of your truest intentions for the days ahead — the more likely you will make your goals reality.

The Veil is Thin: Honoring the Portal of Samhain

Bone witch and friends ‘round the fire on Samhain night, the night of thinnest veil where our world and the otherworld are just a whisper away.

The portal to Samhain is still open this week, as the actual cross-quarter day of Samhain this year is Saturday, November 6th. As you know, the wheel of the year is not based on Gregorian calendar months but on the seasonal shifts and lunations. Saturday marks the exact middle point between Fall Equinox and Winter Solstice, and so we still find ourselves in this thinnest veil time.

Some things to consider this week:

• Speak to or pray to your ancestors. They are here for you. They are rooting for you. You are the descendants they thought of and wondered about long ago (or not so long ago).

• Honor the ancestors and the dead. Create an altar or sacred space where you can honor them with photographs, memories, keepsakes, or their names written down.

• Gather with loved ones and tell stories of times now past. Allow your ancestors and dead to live on in your words and laughter and tears.

• Take time to write and reflect, not only to connect with loved ones, but also to connect to yourself. Write a letter to those who have gone. Ask them questions and then write from their point of you as though they are responding to you (look up automatic writing).

• Journal your own thoughts and feelings and honor your intuition. The veil is not only thinnest between worlds but also thin between your more surface personality and your deep, true, soul self. What is coming up from the depths at this time? It’s worth exploring for it holds clues to the next cobblestones on your path.

If you’d like to connect with this energy more, join us on Wednesday online via zoom for “Dancing with our Ancestors” inside Temple of the Wild Wanderer. Recording will be available inside the Temple archives for members.

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The Ache As Guide To Soul...(On Longing)

Free Wanderer,

Are you acquainted with the feeling of longing?

Do you understand the ache that sits deep in your belly, or in your heart, or in your bones, for something else?
For something more?
For something from another time and place, known or unknown?

We are exploring this longing in depth in tonight's Online New Moon Circle inside the online membership Temple of the Wild Wanderer. If you are a woman/femme and are able, join us for this last minute exploration (details below).

Even if you can't make it, take this new moon as an opportunity to sink, just for a little while, into the sensation of your own longing.

What does longing feel like to you?
Where do you feel it in the body?
If it had a color, or a shape, what would that be?

What is your longing trying to tell you?

Through the work of author Frank MacEowen (I highly recommend his book The Mist-Filled Path: Celtic Wisdom for Exiles, Wanderers, and Seekers), I have come to dive deeper into my own longing and view it as a guide to my soul.

The ache that we feel, the yearning for something more, is not to be ignored.

It's crucial information.

It's reminding you (or trying to, if you'll listen) of who you are meant to be.
Of the truth of your own being.
Of the depths of your own soul.

It's reminding you of times long gone or of times yet-to-come when you live(d) close to the knowing of what it means to be human. To be fully, wildly, beautifully human. Holy and whole.

Most of us probably have a sense of longing in one way or another. We spend much our time in a sacred-starved world. We long for the sacred. We long for beauty. We long for deep community and belonging. We long for our wildness. We long to come home to ourselves.

If you have a sense of longing, embrace it.
It's telling you that this is not all there is. You don't have to settle for just this.

There is so much more hiding behind doorways you just haven't yet found.

If you long for something, your soul is guiding you.

Listen.

Love,
Jen

'Tis The Season: Honoring Our Grief

I'm sending lots of love during what is still a surreal time in our collective! We have been in a place of void for a long time - ways of being are dying and ending, yet the new hasn't yet begun. This void is a very uncomfortable place to be. Yet it is timely to feel everything now, in this season of good grief.

If you work with me closely, you know that my outlook on life and how to be in the world involves an embodied earth-based spirituality that follows the cycles of nature. Autumn is a time of endings. Just as the leaves are falling from the trees, the energy is ripe for releasing and allowing endings to take place.

Notice how the tree does not worry when its leaves begin to change color from green, to yellow, to red, to brown. The tree understands this is a part of its life, its cycle. Nor does the tree struggle, resist, or wish for greener days. The tree allows its leaves to fall, knowing its branches will soon be bare. The tree is able to stay present to all that is.

We can learn much from the trees. In a society that has tricked us into thinking life should be positive forward motion at all times, many of us have become disconnected from our ability to be in the ebb, in the releasing times, in the endings, the death times. And most of us were never taught how to grieve the endings.

Whether we hold grief for a loved one, for an ending or life change, for the earth, or for the things we do not know how to name, this work is important. Learning how to grieve is important. More than important: It's crucial. It's vital. It's emotional life or death.

Perhaps reflect on these times:

• How do you feel as the seasons transition from summer to autumn? Do you find patterns in this transition year to year?
   

• Do you recognize a sense of grief, releasing, or even longing as you move into autumn?
   

• Are you willing to create space to create ritual in your life to honor those people or things that are leaving your life, or have already left your life?
   

One simple way to create space for this includes journaling about that which you grieve. Write a goodbye letter. Write all the reasons you have gratitude for what you are losing. Include and express any forgiveness that you may need to, in order to fully release (remember that forgiveness does not excuse bad behavior, it only frees you from holding onto the pain of it). Write everything to this person or entity or thing in your life that you'd like to say.

Then feel free to symbolize your release by either burning the letter or by reading it out loud near a body of water. What I love to do, is to whisper my grief and my goodbye into a shell or stone at sunset. Then, I hold the shell close to my heart and prepare to let go. As the sun sets, I throw the shell into the water, turn around, and walk away. And if it feels like I really need to release something for good, I make sure not to look back as I walk away.

__

In our Western/American culture, we are most often not taught how to honor our grief. Grief, bereavement, and general sadness are emotions that are often starched white, dressed up, or shoved down, in order to be made more palatable.

In order to be truly whole, and truly free, we must re-learn HOW to grieve, and make sacred space for this emotion to flow.

If you’d like to work with me more closely about this or other soul-development topics, feel free to contact me to book a 1:1 session or join my monthly membership for women and femmes, Temple of the Wild Wanderer.

In the Age of Separation, Be Radical: Call on Community

After recommending it to a friend, I've been really into David Bowie's album Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, and one of my favorite songs is a lesser known song called Five Years.

In this song, Bowie tells the tale of how we've recently learned that the world is ending and we have - you guessed it - only five years left.

Now, I'm not saying the world is ending (although the world as we know it, is definitely shifting in a big big way). However, one part of the song has been deeply striking me, and I just find it so beautiful in its poetic way:

"And all the fat skinny people
And all the tall short people
And all the nobody people
And all the somebody people
I never thought I'd need so many people."

Wow. I never thought I'd need so many people.

Yes. When times are hard, when "the end" is looming, we cannot separate.

We do need each other.

Please remember that throughout these times, we are constantly being programmed to hate and to divide amongst ourselves. The effects of this separation are massive - do you feel them?

I do.

As you walk around the grocery store and have started to fear the other human in a mask near you (don't get too close to me! Don't touch me! Don't look at me!), you are losing a sense of community and thus, humanity.

We are being conditioned to fear one another, to separate from one another - not just socially to avoid spreading an illness, but idealogically, politically, and spiritually.

The true medicine is in community and coming together. It is one of the core pillars of health. There have actually been scientific studies that prove that even the healthiest person physically will NOT have optimal health if they are isolated from relationships, physical touch, and a sense of belonging in community. Feel free to research that.

I never thought I'd need so many people.

How true.

Now is not the time to allow external powers to separate and divide us. Now is the time to both look within and do your inner work, and to reach out and connect with others.

Our lives depend on it.

Divided By Belonging

We want so badly to belong...

That we place ourselves in violent opposition to those who think differently...

We make them “other”...

In order to feel some sort of connectedness...
to those on OUR side, OUR WAY.

We hold hands tight.
Like elementary school children.

We face off.
Stand off.

Red Rover, Red Rover...
Don’t you dare come over...

It feels safe to have a side, doesn’t it?

To have a posse to stand with, as you label those outside YOUR group as THEM: the “faultful” ones?

THEY are the reason for this world’s problems.

It’s THEM.
Look at THEM.

They make me sick.

If only they would see it my way, OUR WAY, the world could be a wonderful place.
A just place.

A perfect place.
Utopia found.

Maybe we can just get RID of THEM.

Vote them in.
Vote them out.
What the hell are we voting about?

Wear them down.
Tear them down.
Wake them up.
Shake them up.

Can we throw them over the wall?
Feed them to “The Russians”?
Make them obsolete! #twilightzone
Maybe the ‘rona will get them (Shhhh.)

Maybe if I troll acquaintances’ posts to call them communists, or fascists, or conspiracy theorists, or sheep, or dissenters, or crazy, or stupid...that means I’m an activist?

Maybe if I shame others for holding an opinion different from mine, that makes me a change agent?

If I yell my beliefs at the top of my lungs in the woods, does Alexa even hear it?

It’s only Us versus Them, baby.
Forever and always.

“Us versus Them” gifts us a chance to belong.

“Us versus Them” gifts us a reason to hate.

In belonging we trust.
Yet divided we fall.
In hate we fall.
We fall.
We fall.
We fall.

*Awaits parachute opening*

One nation.
Divisible by Design.

Black Lives Matter & The Search for Freedom

Black Lives Matter & The Search for Freedom
 

I am wishing each of you some measure of peace during what is a momentous and painful time in our history. I have been fairly quiet as I’ve been navigating many aspects of my personal and family life at the same time as the world has been in the process of conflict, chaos, and deep change. I wanted to take the time to acknowledge what’s happening in the world, so that you can understand where I (and Wander Free Wellness) stand. You may or may not agree with me, and that’s okay. I believe that ideas are not fixed, as my own beliefs and ideas are constantly evolving with the changing times, and as I gather more information. Respectful dialogue (even when in disagreement) is important in this society (and unfortunately, seems to be a dying art).
 

One of the core values of Wander Free Wellness is freedom. I strive to create offerings that help each person to connect to the deepest truest form of themselves. Every single person deserves to live a life where they are free to be their authentic selves, free from the limitations of conditioning by an oppressive system.
 

Unfortunately, we do not yet live in a world where that is possible. The last several weeks have shined a bright light on this truth. However, I believe we may be in the midst of a turning point. I hope we will see the change in this lifetime, and I do believe we are here on this earth at this particular time, to be a part of the solution.
 

The Black Lives Matter movement is a crucial piece to the puzzle in the never-ending search for true freedom. And it’s been quoted many a time, by various people and in different words, that none of us is free until all of us are free. Black lives more than matter, and all of us must band together to fight for our fellow humans.
 

I strive to stand as an ally in this movement, and lately have been trying to understand what true allyship really means. During the last several weeks, I have been made even more deeply aware of my privilege as a white woman, and I am completing my own inner work to understand the ways that I may have been contributing to a culture that is systemically racist and that has benefitted me, merely because of the color of my skin. If you are a white human and haven’t started digging into this work, I have found these curated resources by Rachel Ricketts were a great starting point for me.
 

As an initial step toward furthering my allyship, I am going to donate 10% of all of my profits on yoga classes, jewelry, and bug rub (my natural bug repellant) for the months of June and July to this beautiful organization: https://thelovelandfoundation.org.
 

I will continue to do my inner work. Please stay tuned, or feel free to ask me any time, for more ways that Wander Free Wellness will work to give back to BIPOC and the Black Lives Matter initiative.
 

We all have both individual and collective work to do. We must do the individual work of identifying and changing our privilege, bias, and limiting beliefs. And we must also do the work out in the world of dismantling larger systems of oppression. One type of work is not more important than the other. What is our individual role, and how can we contribute to the whole? I don’t have all the answers, but it’s important to keep the conversation going.
 

In addition, I do not support mentalities that are promoting further division amongst our fellow humans. I’ve noticed that more than ever before, there are forces at work that are seeking to divide us (violently) across various lines, particularly political party lines. We must rise above this, and see that change is more effective when we band together.
 

This is much larger than who we choose to vote for. These systems have been in place throughout centuries of oppression and control, throughout decades of both Democratic and Republican “rule,” and they are not going to be changed with a single vote in a single year. Believing this is like taking an ibuprofen for a fever without treating the root cause of the festering infection.
 

Massive change, throughout our country’s recent history, did not come about merely with a vote. The establishment, and the government, does not simply “decide” to make changes because of who is in political office at the time. The women’s suffrage movement was not successful simply because of how the country voted. The civil rights movement in the 50s and 60s did not gain traction only because of a vote. Change was delivered because enough people came together and demanded it.
 

The “us” versus “them” mentality created across party lines has never served humanity. This is a war mentality. The war, for lack of a better term, should not be against our neighbors. Rather, we should recognize the war as one against an inequitable establishment that has persecuted people and propagated hate and “otherness” for far too long. “Divide and conquer” has been an ongoing tactic of the white supremacist, capitalistic, patriarchal society that has kept inequality, injustice, and the one of the widest wealth gaps in the world THRIVING.
 

How can we change an entire system if we are too busy, too distracted, fighting amongst ourselves?
 

How do we band together against the common enemy of oppression and inequality?
 

Again, I do not have all the answers, and I appreciate that some of you may not agree with everything I’ve said, and that’s okay. I believe it’s my duty as a questioner and seeker, and facilitator of spiritual practices, to ask these types of questions and perhaps spark new, different, or outside of the box thinking. After all, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.”
 

What I do know: it’s time to dig deep, to stop putting bandaids on a gaping gushing wound, and to discover the true root cause of our societal ill - and treat that.
 

Forever in search of freedom and truth.
 

Love,
Jen

The Magic of Vultures

A friend of mine was talking to me yesterday about the mycelium of fungi that gathers nutrients from decaying organic matter. And I was reminded of some writing and reflection I was doing over the past week on an animal that gets too much of a bad rap - the vulture.

I saw several vultures eating an armadillo (yup, an armadillo) in the middle of the road in Georgia recently. I drove by several times, and each time less and less of the dead animal was left on the road. Years ago I may have seen this and felt disgusted... but something inside me has shifted in the way I view the world.

Now I marvel at the beauty of the vulture. The vulture turns rot, decay, and death and finds a source of nourishment from it. The vulture is a literal death-eater. And from the death, it finds fuel, sustenance, and continues with the beautiful cycle of nature and life.

Death is not final. Just as the death of the armadillo became nourishment for another animal to live on, the small deaths that we encounter in our day to day life are often doorways to new possibilities, new life.

Perhaps reflect:

Looking back, can you identify a time in your life where an ending actually ended up being the nourishment or fuel for a beautiful beginning?

Looking ahead, can you imagine that what is ending for you right now, could be fueling a not-yet-known new iteration of your life?

If you'd like to dig into this type of self-reflection and growth work even more with me, subscribe to my YouTube channel or my online membership Temple of the Wild Wanderer for women, trans, nonbinary, and those identifying with the feminine.

Love,
Jen

May Newsletter: No going back...transformation after "corona times"

The line has been drawn...

Dear Free Wanderer,

If you follow me on social media, you may have seen this post already, but it's in my heart and I wanted to share my thoughts and musings here as well, on this current time and how it may be a call to transform through it all.

~ ~ ~

Who were we in the before times?

What were we doing that wasn’t serving us?

What has died because of this current situation?

As I feel this line drawn in the sand digging deeper...and as many places move toward reopening...I can’t help but think:

What do I want to revive?

This time has killed so many aspects of my business and what I was filling my time with.

What do I wish to remain dead?

I see this as an opportunity, showing me areas of my life that were out of balance. When I look back on them now…merely two months ago...It feels like another life.

I wonder: who was that woman?

What parts of her am I bringing back?

And what parts of her and the life she was leading am I allowing to remain behind?

We have this opportunity to let what wasn’t working die in the fire.

And from those ashes rise again in a new form
A truer form
A more powerful form
A form that is NOT living life according to false limiting beliefs, playing small, anything out of alignment, or anything that was not bringing pleasure.

There are certain aspects of my way of being in my work life that I will not be reviving.

Wander Free Wellness will be shifting slightly in terms of offerings that I believe are truer to my heart and more transformational and beneficial for those who appreciate what I have to give.

This will mean fewer yoga asana classes. More workshops, transformational experiences, and moon & nature-based magic circles.

And an online membership and courses will be coming soon so that you can take the transformation, the unveiling, the freeing of your true self online and via the comfort of your own home and your own time.

I’m not sure exactly what everything will look like yet… But it will be coming... and by writing this, I hope to be held accountable.

If this is exciting to you, please make a comment so that helps me stay focused on what matters most to me and my business model...Fulfilling my true soul purpose and mission here on this earth. 

Wander Free.

Love,
Jen

April Newsletter: Finding Opportunity in Fear and Uncertainty

Once in a while you get shown the light...

Dear Free Wanderer,

And on we go.

I'm writing on a day that, for me, started particularly difficult. I've been using a variety of "medicines" to help me get through this time, including nature, dance, and art. However, today (while facing looming self-imposed deadlines to finish many tasks before I enter a 7 day immersion training on Saturday) I felt anxiety mounting. I felt a building tension growing in the center of my chest, and radiating to my back. It felt like a fluttery and buzzing energy that threatened to grow and consume my being if I didn't MOVE. But I couldn't bring myself to do much movement other than vacuuming my entire apartment. Where was this energy trying to move me toward? And why couldn't I focus on my tasks at hand?

I share this, because I know I'm not alone in the waves of anxiety that have been washing over us. It's manifesting in different ways for each of us. We are being forced to sit with extreme uncertainty, being forced to live on a moment-by-moment basis. Many of us are used to feeling like we have control over our lives (even if that's an illusion), and now we do not. Now...we must learn to roll with the wave, or symbolically drown in the process of resisting it.

I believe this uncertainty is a great teacher, although perhaps a harsh one for many of us. (I'm picturing Pai Mei, the kung fu master from Tarantino's Kill Bill 2...)

This uncertainty is asking us:

Who are we, when everything is upended?
Who are we, when we recognize that we must surrender control?
Who are we, when the darkness threatens to swallow us whole?
Who are we, at our core, and in our depths?

What is arising during this time? Even our greatest fears, our hidden fears (completely unrelated to the current events), may be shining up through the murky water from the mucky bottom.

For example, I notice I have sneaky fears of abandonment and fears of being rejected and alone in this world, rising up in my being. This has nothing to do with the external circumstances of this world, but it has everything to do with what I cling to when I feel out of control.

I've realized that I can choose to see this as an opportunity to shake up all of the shadows that hold me back from living my most free life.

It's a chance to look at my fears, and my resistances, in the face and say, "I see you. I thank you for your service. I love you. Teach me what I need to know, and then you can go."

I can choose to see this as an opportunity to learn over and over again how to truly flow...and how to shine my brightest light in the process.

And while the teacher is harsh, and this is trial by fire...man, I just think the Grateful Dead said it best..."Once in a while you get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right."

Oh, and I got out of my house today and went to our local juice shop Juicelation. The sunset drive to Classic Vinyl XM, along with the the meaningful conversation with the bright people there, helped ease my anxiety. Don't underestimate the power of connection, even during a time where we are physically separated by ranges of 6 feet to vast oceans. Reach out to others. You are not alone.

Love,
Jen

P.S. In the fall I wrote a poem on shadow work, the process of looking at and learning from our depths -- from all of our parts, even our unloved aspects of ourselves that lurk in the shadows of our own being. It feels particularly fitting as we navigate these difficult waters. Please feel free to read it here.

Learning to See in the Dark (Thoughts during a difficult time worldwide)

Dear Free Wanderer,

How is your heart and soul during this time?

It's important now, more than ever, that we are taking deep care of our bodies, minds, hearts, and souls. One of my wishes for all of us is that we can use this time of stillness, the void, to learn to nourish ourselves and to build new habits of deep self care. Whatever that means for us. Perhaps it's making your favorite foods that bring joy, getting lots of rest and sleep (or being a night owl!), exercising in a new way, dancing more, getting into nature, or any other activity that just purely brings you happiness and pleasure! What is it that brings you joy? Can you possibly incorporate more of that into these stressful and fearful times?

In addition to finding time for life's nourishments and pleasures, another wish of mine is that we all learn to sit in the darkness.

Darkness is such a teacher. Traditionally we fear or vilify the dark, because within it is the unknown, the shadow, the never-seen. However, we can learn to see in the dark. We can learn to harness night vision.

In this time of darkness, and stillness, much is being revealed. Fears are coming to the surface. Triggers are on high alert. The things we haven't wanted to face are there, waiting for us. We usually cover them with distraction, and we may still be doing that during this time. But they are there...waiting. What would happen if you stopped for a moment, to look at them?

If you watched my recent video on YouTube, you know that I feel we are in a great time of death and rebirth. We are currently in the death phase: the darkness, the pain, the fear; old ways of being and ways of living are dying. They are dissolving in front of our eyes; some may be temporary, others will be lasting. We see this on a collective level but we can also find it individually.
Ask yourself: What is dying in my life right now? Of what can I let go? What am I being forced to shift or change? If nothing seems clear right now, then can you sit in the darkness and be okay with not knowing?

Just as the caterpillar doesn't resist its ultimate "death" as it transforms into the butterfly, we don't have to resist the change that is coming for us. What could it feel like, look like, to embrace the darkness? What would it be like to attempt to cultivate a trust that rebirth is coming, and surrender to it?

We will be exploring this topic deeply to cultivate our night vision through reflection, movement, and ritual next Tuesday, April 7th, on the full moon. We will meet online in circle: all genders welcome. Please see below for details.

For other online yoga classes and self-care practicesnthis week, please stay connected with me on social media and see the schedule below.

Love,
Jen

P.S. The above are suggestions and just one perspective for viewing this time. Keep in mind, there is no wrong way to feel during this time. Learning to see in the dark, is being with it all. I welcome your thoughts, hopes, and fears. Simply hit reply if you feel called to share or need a supportive ear.

A Song of Dirt & Water: A Creation Story

In the beginning there was dirt and there was water.
Each entity lived separate from the other and they were content.

The dirt was strong, independent, grounded and valued stability.
Dirt loved to spend its time forming strong mountains and fortifications.

The water was unpredictable, nomadic, flowing, and valued flexibility and spontaneity.
Water loved to spend its time traveling and swelling and receding with the phases of the great moon.

Although both dirt and water were happy, inside them stirred a longing for something more.
They wondered what they could be if they could harness a new power.
They wondered what way of being they didn’t already know?

Well, be careful what you wish for.
Because suddenly and without much warning, the great full moon shone her light on the dry and lonely expanse of the dirt and on the longing of the water for substance and form.
The great full moon used her power to beckon the dirt toward the water, simultaneously swelling the water to a great tidal wave.
The dirt and the water crashed into one another.

On and on they tumbled and rolled for what felt like an eternity.
From this great romp, the power of imagination was born.
Within one another now, dirt had the ability to see further beyond the structures it had once known, and water had the ability to manifest its flowing creativity into reality.

From this magical connection sprung a beautiful unique seedling, the likes of which neither had seen before. This seedling of imagination created inspiration, and a new way of life was born.

In the end, all was pure possibility.

Written by Jen Wyatt and Nicky Atanasio, designed for a yoga movement and story ritual.

Interstellar Travel & Dreamscapes

Interstellar Travel & Dreamscapes

In my last newsletter I spoke about waking your wild, and ways to do that. This month has been a wild one for me, and I'm in the middle of one of my busiest times. So, my writing will be short and sweet this time with just a couple of thoughts:

On Friday, we blasted to the cosmos and back at Moonage Daydream: The Starman Yoga Experience. It was a carefully crafted David Bowie playlist with an accompanying choreographed yoga flow and curated projected visuals, all designed by yours truly. I'll be posting a lot of photos and videos on my social media channels soon, so be sure to follow on Facebook and Instagram.

My takeaway from this event: waking your wild, and letting your freak flag fly, is always the way to go. The more I let myself be "weird," the more my life feels in flow. The right people notice my flag, and the community of like-minds naturally builds. I feel so lucky to have found so many people who appreciate my unconventional offerings.

How can you wave your freak flag a little more this month?

In other news, I've always been a vivid dreamer, but I've been paying particular attention to my dreams lately. What started as intense nightmares two weeks ago slowly became meaningful dreams that gave me messages about next steps in my life. Without overthinking it, I've been following the clues in my dreams in order to make decisions in my waking life. And it feels so right.

Our dreams give us powerful messages from our subconscious...often like a breadcrumb trail. When we learn how to tap into the meaning of our dreams, we can access a wealth of information, intuition, and knowledge that can be beneficial for our life. Can't remember your dreams? Start by waking up and writing down any glimmers from the night before. What emotions did you wake with? Is there one image in your mind? A color? An essence? Practice writing down whatever comes to you every single morning. Over time, you will likely start to remember more and more.

And on that note, the dreamland is calling to me.

Until next time...
Turn and face the strange.

Love,
Jen

Wake Your Wild: Practices to Awaken Your Untamed Essence

Wake Your Wild

As a follow up to my last newsletter, where I discussed the idea of shedding layers to return to the true & wild essence of the soul, I've got a variety of events coming up designed to help you do just that.

For those of you not local, or unable to come to my events, you can practice this work on your own. How do we "wake our wild"? Our instinctual, primal, intuitive, creative, and free nature is a part of us already. We are often simply too distracted with work, bills, and emotion-numbing and self-medicating practices to feel it. It's been domesticated and ignored, but your wild is there, my friend.

You may feel wild in one area of your life and completely stifled in another. You may feel totally free, or you may have no idea what connecting to the wild nature even feels like. Wherever you are on this spectrum, it's all welcome here.

Here are just a few practices, some medicine, to help you get started in thinking about how to awaken your inner wild - your true nature.

Journal:
Complete these sentences

• For too long, I have felt...

• I am ready to release the {role/belief/layers} of...

• To me, wild and free means...

• I feel wild and free when...

• My true wild nature is longing to...

Dance:
Put on music that makes you feel alive, sensual, or really energized. Then, move your body. Don't try to do dance moves that you think "look good". Move your body in a way that feels good. If it doesn't feel good, don't do it. Keep moving your body and experiment - what movements make you feel free? What movements make you feel alive? What movements make you feel the most like you?

Get in Nature:
Ditch the phone and get in nature, whatever the season and whatever that means for you. Drive to the ocean. Walk in the woods. Spend time in a park. Feel the air on your skin, press your hands into the snow or sand, dip your toes in the ocean water, breathe in the scent of the outdoors. Nature is medicine and she will help you return to the truth of who you are, if you are present with her.

Make Art:
I don't mean a masterpiece. Get a couple colors of paint, one canvas or pad of paper, and a paintbrush. Draw circles, scribbles, designs, spirals. Paint dots. Paint the whole page. Make a mess. Wanna get really wild? Use your fingers instead of the paintbrush. There is no goal; just practice putting your energy into your creation. Notice how you feel as you smear paint around. Realize that what you are doing is 100% unique. No one else in the world has created, or will ever create, the same piece of art that you've just made. HOW AMAZING IS THAT?

If you try any of these simple practices, please respond to me and let me know how you feel.

Love,
Jen

Transformation or Just a Remembering? Reflections on a New Year

New Year: Transformation vs. Remembering?

I've been thinking about the concept of transformation for a while. Truth be told, I've felt like a butterfly going through a metamorphosis over the last several years of my life. Those of you who have been following these newsletters (or know me personally) for that long, have no doubt seen shifts happening in how I express myself and consequently, in the shape of Wander Free Wellness.

Over the last six months I've been going through a deeper shift in my being. As I've been saying in my classes, 2019 was a doozy, and I know so many of you have felt this. During these last six months, I've probably felt into my murky depths more than any other time in my life. Some sort of "Dark Night of the Soul" has had a grip on me during this "dark moon" phase in my life.

What do I mean by that? The dark moon is the time when there is no moon visible in the sky. It's the end of the moon cycle when one phase has ended but the new cycle hasn't yet begun. Spiritually, emotionally, mentally, perhaps even physically, I've been hanging in this void for about 6 months. I've felt like there was a significant death of parts of me, but wasn't quite sure what was dying and what was on the other side. Perhaps you can relate to times like this in your life?

During this time, one of my gazillion contemplations has been the idea of "transformation" and the wellness industry's (and my) use of this word. If you go to my website you'll see that part of my mission is facilitation of self-discovery, transformation, and healing through my services. Well...the word transformation, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, is "a complete change in the appearance or character of something or someone."

Hmmm...I'm now challenging whether a transformation is really an ideal goal. What I want to help you with is not a complete change, although it may appear to be from the outside, especially if you've been living life according to someone else's rules for far too long. What I want you to feel is a returning. A remembering. Of who you truly are. A return to your true nature. You don't need to change, because it's already there, within you. You just need to re-discover it.

I think of it as taking off layers of falsities and niceties and all the conditioning we "put on" throughout the years from birth till now. Most of us are walking around wearing sweaters, jackets, and goose-down-&-bullshit-stuffed parkas of conditioning. Swaddled in the lived-by rules that aren't ours, and never were. We have been taught, we have been molded, to be a certain way by the society and influences around us. And all that is making us heavy; don't you feel it? That sneaking feeling that something is just not quite right, or you're just not quite satisfied? I sure have felt it over the years, and I've been slowly stripping down during this hot-flash-of-awakening to my true nature.

You don't need to carry these layers. In 2020, how about you let some of them go? What is keeping you from feeling free? What rules about "the way things should be done" are you following blindly without ever having thought whether they serve your soul? What beliefs about yourself or others are operating in your psyche without your full permission or agreement? They are hard to identify because most of them are subconscious and have been with us for our entire lives...but it is possible to shift.

For me, 2020 is not a year of transformation.
2020 is a year of continuing to take off my jackets, my layers, my chains, and continuing to remember who I truly am.
2020 is a year of returning to my wild nature.

You and I are amazing, free, creative beings capable of so much more than we can comprehend. I know this to be true for all souls. We are more powerful than we can even imagine, and life is more than this grind we've fallen into.

Strip. Shed. Return to you.

In 2019, a friend of mine said to me that a crow needs to caw loudly so the other crows can recognize it and find it.

Who are you? What will be your call?
We are listening.

I'll be cawing and cackling my way through 2020.
Some people won't like it. Some people will love it. Some people may leave my life. The right ones will stay. New ones will find me.

It may be messy.
It's going to get weird.
But it's going to be damn beautiful. 

Will you join me in your own quest to wander free?
Happy New Year.

Love,
Jen

My Favorite Essential Oils

If you’ve taken any of my in-person classes, you know that I love to offer essential oils as a supplement to a mindful practice of yoga, meditation, or workshop. Essential oils can be a very powerful medicine, relaxation tool, and complement to your life.

The world of essential oils can be quite overwhelming, so here are a few of my favorites that I use regularly and incorporate into my yoga classes. I’ve broken up this article into a few single oils and then a lot of blends - as well as a few of my own personal creations at the end of this article!

If you’d like to order any of these oils, you can click the link or photo, or contact me directly for assistance.

Single Oils

Lavender

Lavender is probably the most well known and widely used oil and it helps with relaxation, calming the nervous system, and aids sleep.

The best part about this lavender product is that it can be taken internally, as well as diffused in the air or applied topically. As someone who struggles with periodic anxiety, taking some deep breaths of lavender or putting a couple drops under my tongue or in water has been a helpful tool.

Peppermint

I use peppermint whenever I need a quick pick me up! Peppermint is energizing and it will help you get through that 3pm slump without another cup of coffee. When I’m feeling tired or sluggish and I’m unable to take a nap, I put a couple of drops of peppermint in my palms, rub together, and take a few deep inhales. I also apply it to the back of my neck. The intense tingle of the peppermint as well as the scent will wake you up and help you get on with the tasks ahead of you.

Siberian Fi

Siberian Fir is a new oil for me and I’m pretty much bathing myself in it lately. This is another calming and grounding oil that smells like a Christmas Tree, but better. Maybe it’s from growing up in the woods of rural New Hampshire, but the smell of evergreens is so peaceful and grounding. 

Blends from DoTerra and Wander Free Wellness
I love experimenting and making my own blends, as well as using the blends from DoTerra. Scroll down for both!

Balance Blend

This grounding blend is one of my favorites and I use it any time I’m feeling airy, spacey, anxious, or just in need of some calming and grounding. It’s perfect for the root chakra, which governs your safety and stability. It’s an absolute favorite in my yoga classes, people love it! I love to massage my feet with it for an added bonus of grounding.

Balance is a woody and floral blend of Spruce, Ho Wood Leaf, Frankincense, Blue Tansy, Blue Chamomile, and Osmanthus. I didn’t know what a few of those things were before I purchased this oil and it’s been so worth it. Balance is the perfect option for you or a loved one who needs to promote feelings of calm and grounding.

Breathe Blend

This blend has worked wonders for me with aiding congestion and trouble breathing. I grew up with asthma, and while it’s mostly gone away, occasionally it will rear its head when I’m around a large amount of allergens. Recently, I was pet sitting for a friend and I got a little too friendly with the cats (I’m allergic, but still can’t help loving on all animals). Before I knew it, I realized I was having a small asthma attack. I didn’t have an inhaler with me, since I hardly have this problem. So, I reached for the Breathe Blend and rubbed some on my hands and below my nostrils, and just kept inhaling. After 5-10 minutes, I noticed dramatic improvements in my breathing, and after a second application, my asthma attack stopped within the half hour. It was pretty amazing, and it has made me a fan of Breathe even more. I’m not recommending to replace your medication with Breathe, but if you have any respiratory issues or congestion, this could be a helpful tool in your toolkit.

Motivate Blend

This is another blend that is popular among the yoga students; it’s a motivating and encouraging blend. The blend of vanilla with uplifting oils such as peppermint, various citrus oils, and herbal oils such as basil and rosemary is delicious and helps for a gentle pick-me-up. I love to rub it on the back of my neck when I need a boost to finish my tasks or take on a more active yoga class. Give it a try!

On Guard Blend

This is an immune booster and cleanser - a great one to keep on hand for traveling and for the winter months when a lot of people are getting sick. I like to take it internally as an immune booster, especially at the first signs of feeling run down. This can also be made into (or purchased as) a hand sanitizer for quick on the go cleansing (i.e. on an airplane, after touching a gas pump, etc). It has a gazillion other uses, so check out the link and see for yourself!

Deep Blue Blend

This is a great one for those of us who have periodic sore muscles or joints and need some quick relief. It’s a cleaner, more natural alternative to something like BenGay or IcyHot and has helped me in a pinch when my body has felt out of whack with soreness or tightness. If you are in chronic pain, I always believe in finding the root cause and treating that, rather than just treating the symptom. But like some of the other oils, this can be a tool to help manage your pain and soreness in the meantime while you work on exploring the root cause of your issue.

DigestZen Blend

Last of my listed DoTerra blends, but certainly not least, the DigestZen has been another game changer in my life. As someone with a sensitive gut and many food sensitivities, I often struggle with an upset stomach or bloating after meals. DigestZen is a super quick fix to bring relief to so many gastrointestinal symptoms. A blend of oils of herbs that are known to help soothe digestion, this is a must for anyone with any gastrointestinal symptoms. As with other ailments, an imbalanced gut (dysbiosis, or imbalanced microbiome) must be treated at its root cause - but this is a helpful aid to keep on hand to give your belly a little assistance!

Jen’s oil blends

Wander Free “Purple Haze”

This is a calming earthy blend with some of my favorite oils, and it’s been a big hit in my yoga classes as well. I first made this blend for my Jimi Hendrix Laser Light Yoga Experience, and intuitively created something that would seem like a Jimi or Purple Haze blend. The result is a proprietary blend of siberian fir, lavender, eucalyptus, and virginia cedarwood. Give it a shot!

$10 per rollerball, order via email

Wander Free “Calm Focus”

This is another oil that I use when I need an uplift and focus but still need some balancing to my nervous system. Are you the type of person that can get very jittery or adrenaline when you have a lot to do? Calm Focus gives you a balance of uplift and relaxation to get your work done. Lavender, peppermint, and wild orange make up this unique helpful blend.

$10 per rollerball, order via email

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A word from Jen about using essential oils:

Because essential oils are basically breaking down parts of the plant into its chemical compounds, you MUST use oils from a high quality source, especially when you are using them topically (or internally, as you can with Doterra). I prefer either certified organic or sustainable harvested with healthy farming practices. If you need help deciding whether a brand of oil is of an appropriate quality, you can contact me for help or do some research online. You can also contact a company to ask them how they harvest, how they test for quality, etc.. Just because the bottle says “pure” or “natural” does not make it so, unfortunately.

I am authorized to sell Doterra, and these are the oils I use most often, so you will find these above. I would never encourage you to purchase something that I didn’t personally believe in. I also trust and use oils from Mountain Rose Herbs, a company out of Portland Oregon, and I buy their certified organic oils. I also use many Mountain Rose Herbs oils in my all natural essential oil bug repellant. If you are on a budget, Mountain Rose Herbs is less expensive for single oils, but the lavender oil and the above specific blends from Doterra are really irreplaceable in their quality and results, so I recommend sticking with Doterra for those!

Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor and all information here is my personal opinion and experience. Please check with your own personal healthcare practitioner before beginning any regimen of essential oils.

Autumn Shadow: A Poem About Shadow Work

Autumn Shadow

As the days grow shorter
And darkness comes to play
Will you turn toward her
Or will you turn away?
The thing about shadow is
She can be gentle or fierce
A slight whisper that calls you
Or a shrill that can pierce
The ears they hide secrets
Under corn husks, unseen
What lies do you hide
In that smile and between
The rows of plump pumpkins
The flesh and the bone
In autumn she calls you
To wander alone

For alone she can find you
In stillness is truth
The shadow she beckons —
She’s the one of your youth
The one you’ve forgotten
In the distraction and din
She’s come back to haunt you
To unite you again
You can fight, beg, or plead
Or turn toward her at last
This shadow won’t hurt you
She’s come ‘cause you asked
You asked to be whole
To feel good, to be healed
Will you do what it takes
To keep your fate unsealed?
Will you stand in the darkness?
Will you stir up the muck?
To release what’s been hiding?
To free what’s been stuck?
This is her medicine
Should you choose to accept
To embrace all her teachings
Even weep tears unwept
To face her with bravery
Turn toward her with love
This shadow’s no demon
Nor sent from above
In the darkness you see her
What you feared might be true
Except now you’re not frightened —

The shadow is you.

~

copyright 2019 Jennifer Wyatt

Giving Yourself the Gift of Fun...and More on "Productivity"

I've been thinking a lot lately about our attitudes toward life once we reach adulthood. Many lose their sense of curiosity, their sense of wonder, and their ability to just let go and ENJOY. There's a pressure to take things more "seriously." We want to be taken seriously by other adults and we believe that acting silly and happy-go-lucky is juvenile or pointless. I think we all know these people, or perhaps have been there ourselves.

What are we doing?

When our perfect souls first come into this world as humans, we understand and remember our purpose. Aren't we on this magnificent planet to experience joy, beauty, and growth? And part of this is having pure, beautiful, fun.

I wrote a post on Instagram recently as a call for us to lighten up, especially surrounding our spirituality. You can read it here.

Fun is sacred.
Being present, truly in the moment, is sacred.
Spending time and/or money on things that bring you true connection and joy is sacred.

A month or so ago I wrote a bit about self-care vs. productivity...the ever-present battle. I wrote how we often push activities that are good for us off to a later time, while instead we prioritize only those things that are "productive." The problem is, our view of what constitutes productivity is flawed.

When was the last time you heard this sentence?
"Wow, I was so productive today! I practiced my guitar for 2 hours, cooked a delicious healthy meal for myself, and then took a luxurious bath with essential oils." 

We've been conditioned to think that productivity is only those things that make us money, that relate to our jobs, or that get us ahead in some way. Very rarely do we hear someone refer to a hobby as "productive" or refer to an act of self-care as "productive."

But I'm hoping I can help you change that. I'm working on changing it myself.

What would happen if you decided to believe that taking care of yourself is true productivity? What if we decided that FUN = PRODUCTIVITY. After all, spending time doing things that bring us joy is a cause of long-term happiness. And I think we can all agree that the ultimate goal of most humans is to lead a happy life. (For you dataheads, fun and play is actually scientifically proven to improve overall health.)

This new sort of productivity doesn't have to cost money, and I encourage you to take the time out of each day to do something small that brings you real joy, fun, and/or play.

This new productivity could also mean booking an experience that brings you joy, that helps you connect with yourself, and that helps you lead the life you want to live. If you're craving a deeper more epic experience for yourself, read on for our Memorial Day sale on a beautiful yoga retreat to the southern coast of Ireland. We have 6 spots left, and leave in just 3 months - and I hope you consider choosing this for yourself.

Love,
Jen

Self-Care vs "Productivity"

I've been talking a lot lately about self-care and how often we feel guilt for taking care of ourselves! I noticed this the other day when I was resting but thinking about everything on my to do list. Does that sound like rest?

Our conscience is way out of whack! Many of us spend so much time feeling good about ourselves only if we are "productive." Productive, in our minds, might be: making money, working for someone else, working for ourselves, building a business, taking care of someone else, feeding the kids, dropping Jimmy and Jane off at soccer practice, etc. etc.

But what about when we take a nice long bath and read a book. Do we call that productive?
What if we take a nice walk out in nature, without our phones. Is that productive?
What if we invest in extended mindful time away from our routine - is that productive?

Let's change our mindset about what is worth spending time and money on.
Let's start to believe that self-care IS productivity.
When we take care of ourselves, we have more energy and fuel to do the tasks we need to accomplish.
AND we stay happier, healthier, and more fulfilled in the process.

Endless "To Do" List? Try this life-changing happiness tip.

Change your focus, change your world.

Does your life feel like a never-ending to do list? Does your to do list, have to do lists?
Do you live in a sea of post-it notes?
Does it feel like you’re drowning in tasks and as soon as you finish one or two, you have 5 more to add to the list?
Do you go to bed at night thinking about all the things you didn’t yet get to, and everything you have to do the next day?
Does this even keep you up at night?

The struggle is real. I’m here to tell you you’re not alone.

But I’m also here to give you a really powerful tool that I discovered on my own the other day.

Create a “Things I Did” list.

I am a recovering perfectionist. I’ve spent much of my life measuring my self-worth by my accomplishments. I am a compulsive achiever. And yet I rarely celebrate those achievements.

I know I’m not alone, and I know it’s rare for most of us to celebrate all we’ve done. In this fast-paced digital age, there is always one more thing to do. It seems things are moving at the speed of light and we often don’t give ourselves the time and space to

pause.

In that pause, there is so much to be grateful for. We have so much to be proud of.
You have accomplished so much.
You accomplish so much every single day.

One Saturday a couple of weeks ago, I decided to try something new. I was swimming in a sea of work, and had a bunch of paper to-do lists sitting around, but I knew that I wanted to do a lot for myself, and that I needed to catch up around the house.

I had a transformative thought that changed my entire day.

I decided to focus on my accomplishments.

So I made a new list. I crossed out “to do” and wrote “I did”.

My “Things I Did” list made me feel so accomplished, so proud of myself, for all that I had completed in a single Saturday. I wrote things big and small. Doing the dishes made the list. Watering the plants made the list. My cooking made the list. My crafts and work tasks made the list.

Not all of my days will look like this. Some will have more and some will have less. Some will be focused on all the yoga classes I taught, the errands I ran. Some will be focused on the phone calls I made to catch up with friends and family.

But when I make this list, it helps me to realize that - I am accomplishing a lot. We are all accomplishing a lot. You should feel proud of all that you do, and celebrate each day.

And as an added bonus, you will gain added insight and self-awareness into how you spend your time. If you’re not sure you like what’s on the list, you have the opportunity to recognize it and then change it. For me, I’m working to change those days that I spend 2 hours exploring instagram…we all have our things!


What are you proud of accomplishing today?

P.S. You’re awesome.