12 Things I Learned in 2022

1. I can reach out to anyone in the world if I have a good enough reason. It can be as simple as letting them know I appreciate their work, but if I want to chat with them personally it’s good to use a framework that they can recognize, whether that’s a podcast, consultation, or discussion panel.

2. My daughter needs attention more than anything in the world. This doesn’t mean I need to be with her all the time, the company of other people is important for her too, but at the end of the day nothing and nobody can replace her mom. This is normal and expected at this stage of life.

3. I’m a highly sensitive person, and so is my daughter. In stressful situations I need to slow down and recharge rather than double down on action. I can’t measure myself by anyone else’s standards, and I shouldn’t apologize for being who I am.

4. The world needs my medicine. I can only carry it wherever it’s needed the most if I practice regularly when the stakes are relatively low, whether that’s singing, listening, conversation, tarot, yoga, or setting the vibe of all sorts of gatherings.

5. Creating a friendly, cozy, and comfortable home is absolutely worth my time - especially if I want to run a retreat center sometime in the future. But even if I won’t, helping my family feel good and live the lives they want is an incredibly worthy goal of its own.

6. I have a lot to share with the world, all I have to do is stop worrying whether I sound smart and get out of my own way. The right words will flow effortlessly as soon as I do that.

7. In every moment there’s infinitely more things worth doing than time to do them all. This doesn’t mean I must hurry, but I absolutely must decide which of these things will be left undone, and accept things being less than perfect.

8. I can only give what I already have myself. In order to bring joy to the city I need to recharge in nature. In order to be a good mom I need to spend some time alone. In order to share something valuable with the world, I need to go offline every once in a while.

9. When things get challenging, I tend to curl up in the corner and wait for the storm to pass. I’m worried that if I stir things up too much, I will get the wrong kind of attention and only make everything worse. But sometimes stirring things up is precisely what’s needed. And yes, some people might get upset, but ultimately that’s their problem not mine.

10. It’s infinitely easier to destroy something than to build it from scratch. This is no reason to stop building.

11. Having a grandkid that they can love and spoil is one of the best things that ever happened to my parents. Whenever given a choice, I want to choose the option that increases my chances of experiencing this kind of joy myself too.

12. We all come from somewhere. Studying the history of these places, our families and ancestors, and their habits, lifestyles and beliefs can give us a lot of information about who we are and why we do things in a certain way. Some of these habits are still worth preserving, some other ones are solutions to problems that no longer exist, but ultimately everyone has to tell for themselves which is which.

That’s it for 2022. Here’s to all the revelations and discoveries that the New Year will bring ❤️