Today I woke up happy. Perhaps because it’s Sunday, or perhaps because it’s a long weekend (although that means less these days without a 9-5). But really, it’s because I woke to the sun beaming through my linen curtains; rays of light spraying onto my duvet. To feel the heat from our star, to welcome warmer days, is one of life’s purest delights. How can one wake up, feel the suns radiance, and not smile?
We, like flowers, feed from the sunlight. And, like flowers, our petals unfold upon brighter days as we open up to the world, leave the comforts of our nests, and engage with each other. The concrete jungle of New York City becomes alive with a noticeable buzzing energy, and you can sense it in the air and amongst the crowds: vibing outdoor cafes, musicians playing on the street, vendors circling the Washington Square Park fountain, graduates cheering, and people falling in love - with each other, and the city that never sleeps.
I sometimes think: if only it were May all year around. But I remember there is beauty in the changes, in the transitions, in the seasons. We are inextricably bound to the fluctuating temperatures, colors, and storms; and our emotions reflect such. We peak and valley with the Earth's currents, amidst its tangent waves.
At Google, my last project was redesigning the weather experience on Search. Weather is the top #2 query on Google Search, amounting in billions of searches worldwide everyday. Never before have we had so much data and advanced technology to understand the ebbs of the atmosphere. We humans rely on the forecast to understand how to engage with the world around us - from preparing for severe weather storms to deciding what to wear or which mode of transportation to take. And while we can measure and track the weather, we still fall victim to its tides. I find this to be both humbling and inspiring - humans cannot contain the sublime elemental forces outside of us (including the consequential effects of climate change that we have wrought upon ourselves, another story for another time).
As one very susceptible to the daily thermometer reading (looking at you, New York winters), I have become aware of how interconnected our moods are with the environments around us. We all seek beauty and balance in some form. I think of Vitalist Herbalism, which believes in aligning mind, body and spirit with one another and with the Earth to achieve holistic health and balance:
“In vitalism, the causes of disease…can also arise from a misalignment between the organism and its environment. In other words, a person’s interactions with the world around them affect them psychologically, emotionally, and physically. Vitalist traditions suggest that people get sick because of how they live everyday, including the foods they eat, thoughts they think, people they surround themselves with, the weather, seasonal changes, and a host of other factors. The therapeutic goal is to achieve balance between one’s internal constitution and the external environment.” (Evolutionary Herbalism, Sajah Popham).
On this note, the wellbeing of our lives depends not just on the weather, but on our surroundings, our homes, our family, our food, our choices, and especially - our community. I imagine us as permeable energetic fields, billiard balls of karmic energy bouncing off the walls of our lives in an everlasting dance of good and ill will. They say you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with, and I believe it to be true. To live intentionally is to be aware of the energy exchanges we engage in daily, and the boundaries and environments that contain and inform them. Through this lens, we are all one and whole, a breathing organism that is our Mother Earth.
In a way, humans have created their own currents and patterns - not of the atmosphere, but from our own hands - creating systems and networks, fingers interwoven, lives connected, love transferred. What I have most recognized from this solo-entrepreneurial journey so far is that I am actually not alone. It’s been beautiful to witness Fleurvoyant’s germination overnight - sprouting a vast and robust root system that has grown from the soil depths of my nourishing community.
I felt this most acutely during the Summer of Love flower crown workshop I led with
Wade Brill. This moment filled me up with joy, sharing the evening with my mother, co-hosting with my coach, and facilitating for friends from all pockets of life who came out to support.
Alas, as always, we end with gratitude. For the support, the small joys, and life’s simple moments: watching peony bulbs open into innumerable layers, feeling the sun on our skin, and waking up smiling.
