“You did not lose out on anything that did not happen for you. Your life is in divine order.”
-Lalah Delia

#REALTALK

 

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The Quest for Belonging: Our time in LA is almost up, and I have to say, this is the first stop on our #vanlife adventure where I feel sad to go. A lot of people thought I’d hate it here. It’s so crowded. The traffic is horrible. The people are superficial. Despite the warnings, I felt an intuitive pull to go anyway. And you know what? I haven’t been this happy in a long time. When met with surprised looks and questions of: how that could be, I tell this story: A few Sundays ago, after a long hike, Andrew and I ordered takeout from a Chinese restaurant in San Gabriel Valley (or SGV as the locals call it) which I told my mom was like if Chinatown were an entire city. We took our food to a nearby park for a picnic dinner. Little Asian kids played on scooters. Asian grannies did their calisthenics. Red good luck characters hung above everyone’s front door. I took a bite out of a dish filled with shiitake mushrooms, soft tofu, garlic greens, and thin ginger slices, and as the food touched my tongue, I had a full-body remembrance. It was as if I could taste the food of my ancestors. I looked across the checkered blanket at my Chinese husband, we both smiled, and something just felt right.

Dear Self,
We don’t do healing work to be happy. We do healing work to feel W H O L E.

Boundary Tests: My boundaries were tested to the max this past month. Clients not paying. Colleagues disrespecting my workload. Family being invasive. People just generally pissing me off. My tendency in these situations is to self-sacrifice, to “take one for the team,” to make myself small in hopes of getting rid of the problem. But you know what? I’m tired of being the martyr. Anger is a super difficult emotion for me to access so a big part of my empowerment journey is learning to accept when I’m angry and letting that be ok.

Repeat after me: My needs matter.

Health is Wealth: I’ve been going through some health issues and am reminded that nothing really matters if you don’t have your health. Health really is wealth. I often operate as if I don’t have a body, that my only limitation is how many hours there are in the day. Then I get sick or have searing headaches or can’t sleep or my cycle gets f*cked up and I’m like Oh yeah, my body. This is why I drag myself to acupuncture, to remind myself that I have a body. It’s the one place where I let myself fully relax and can hear what my body’s trying to tell me.

WARM AND FUZZIES

Mindfulness of Breath Meditation by Dawn Mauricio

 

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I’m always on the lookout for a good WOC-led meditation and this one hits the spot! 10-minutes long. Simple guidance. Frequent reminders to come back to the breath. I’ve been listening to it a few times per week and after each time, I feel like I just gave my mind a bath. Plus, you can find it on Insight Timer, which is my fave free meditation app!

OBSESSION OF THE WEEK

Sạch Goods Candles

 

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I recently discovered Sạch Goods candles at a super cute boutique in LA Chinatown called Chunky Paper. Sạch means clean in Vietnamese. This lovely company is owned by a Vietnamese-American couple and their eco-conscious candles are inspired by their heritage and personal experience. Too cool!

MONTHLY HAPPENINGS: FEATURES + EVENTS

• This Asian American Life: The Search for Asian Pride
• The Spirit Almanac by Emma Loewe & Lindsay Kellner: Book Review
• Be Wild Be Free by Amber Fossey: Book Review

XO,

Elizabeth