From cardboard wars in Portugal to old inner voices I thought I’d packed away, this season has been about more than pool dreaming about floats – it’s been about loosening shame’s grip and finding real freedom.
Is it healing, or just a really pretty way to avoid your feelings? From retreat mats to festival dance floors, psychedelics are often framed as tools for healing and transformation – but they’re just as often used as another way to mentally check out.
Two weeks. Scorching temps. Forty thousand people vibrating to trance in the Portuguese sun. Boom Festival felt like stepping into another world where glitter is clothing, hugs are sacred, and your only job is to immerse yourself in the experience. I wasn’t on a quest for transformation like so many others attending – but I did swim nude, sleep soundly through nonstop psytrance beats, and practice peeing gracefully (sort of) in a compost toilet.
Letting go of comfort is easy to romanticize from a distance. But as I prepare to spend two weeks off-grid, I know there’s no script for what’s ahead. This isn’t the kind of journey you plan down to the detail – it’s the kind where you show up, let go, and see what emerges when convenience falls away.
There’s nothing like being abroad on the 4th of July to remind you how strange patriotism can be. From here, the holiday looks less like a celebration and more like a performance. Love of country doesn’t mean ignoring the mess — it might mean finally acknowledging it.
I recently had one of those days where nothing seemed to go smoothly – a string of mishaps that kept piling on. It stirred up the memory of a particularly hectic day that I wrote about back at the end of 2022 (funny how certain moments stay crystal clear over the years). As it came rushing back, I decided I should revisit what I took away from the experience.
Unprocessed emotions often find expression in the body. Skin issues, inflammation, chronic tension – these symptoms may be signs of unresolved feelings stored deep within. The link between mental and physical health runs deeper than most of us were taught. And healing begins by listening.
George I. Gurdjieff was what you’d call a modern day mystic – an unconventional spiritual teacher who was committed to “waking up” as many people as possible. His mission was to guide people living in the U.S. and Europe to higher consciousness, believing that humans exist in a state of “waking sleep” – essentially held captive by the unruly emotions that run them.
It’s been a while since I connected on a more personal level. I usually have online community gatherings (like Elevation Ceremonies) to stay in touch. But since that hasn’t happened lately, I want to share a few things that have been going on.
Don’t worry. Be happy!
Whether it’s a secular or spiritual environment, so much of what we’re taught about how to manage our thoughts boils down to one message: “Don’t think those bad thoughts! Think only good thoughts!” And it’s a prescription for mental disaster.