Hi friends, 
 
What do you consider sacred in your life? 
 
The only time I have ever used that word is when I describe the birth of my son, Raffi. From Dictionary.com, the definition of Sacred is entitled to veneration or religious respect by association with divinity or divine things; holy.
 
For me, birth felt holy. Nothing else has quite compared to the sacredness and transformative power of that experience.
 
But lately, I've been thinking about the word Sacred in a new context. While I am not expecting divine miracles every day, I am wondering, how can I bring more reverence into my day-to-day life? 
 
Let me back up a bit. 
 
As much as I love living in NYC, it's a loud and fast-paced city. And even though I work from home, I am constantly online, whether it's on Zoom calls, emails, or social media. Most of the time, I am okay with this way of life and truly enjoy it. But a few weeks ago, I felt my intuition telling me it was time to get quiet again. When we're constantly connected and always going, going, going, it's hard to hear our own inner voices. If we want to have a deeper relationship with our intuition, then we need to carve out the space for listening and connection.
 
So here are a few things I'm doing and thinking about in order to bring more of this sacredness into my life. 
 
1. Create meaningful rituals. I love routines and habits, but lately, I've been thinking about how to add more meaning and intention to the things I'm already doing daily. Some examples: 
 
🙏🏼 Say a prayer of gratitude before meals for the food and everyone involved in its production
🧘🏻‍♀️ Burn incense before meditating and check in with my spirit guides
🕯️Light a candle after cleaning, stare at the fire for a few moments, and be grateful for a clean and cozy home
🪥 Practice gratitude while brushing my teeth at night and think about all the things I'm grateful for from that day.
🎧 Listen to this EMDR album while writing 
 
What are some of your meaningful rituals? 
 
2. Engage in acts of kindness towards others. We all know how simple it can be to be kind to the strangers around us, but how often are we letting our own thoughts (or devices) interrupt our chances for connection? The next time you're on the subway (or whatever is similar to where you live), look around and pay attention to the people surrounding you. People will likely be on their phones, but see how it feels to send them kind and loving thoughts. Just sending them kindness can be a sacred expression of love, empathy, and interconnectedness, reminding us of our shared humanity. 
 
How can you offer kindness to those around you? 
 
3. Keep certain things intentionally private (online). I tend to be an open book and as a community minded person, I believe there is great value in sharing personal experiences because it's a way to build trust and connection with people. But in an age of constant connection where technology has blurred the lines between public and private, choosing to keep certain things solely for myself or close friends feels like a luxury.  Now anytime I am considering posting to social media, I ask myself, is this post meant to be shared publicly, or is there something sacred to keeping the moment private? It's not that I won't share personal things again, but choosing to keep certain things just for myself is what feels good for me right now, even if it also means less posting. 
 
What is your relationship to sharing online?  
 
If you're like me and also looking to add sacredness into your life, I encourage you to slow down, pay attention to the details, and be fully engaged in what you’re doing. Little by little, you can transform routine activities into sacred rituals. 
 
Have a lovely weekend!
 
✨✨✨✨✨
Love,
Lisa
5 Things I Loved This Week
 
To Be Magnetic
 
When I first heard about TBM, I was fairly skeptical. It's a membership program for Neural Manifestation based on the belief that we don’t manifest from our conscious day-to-day thoughts, but rather, from our subconscious. This means you can “think positive” and make all the vision boards, but if you picked up a limiting belief that what you desire isn’t possible, your manifestation will not come through. Unblocking subconscious limiting beliefs of unworthiness is essential to connecting with manifestations and this program provides a grounded, step-by-step process of expanding, unblocking, and taking actions that help you align with any dreams you desire.
 
Like I said, I was def skeptical! But I signed up (ha!) and a few weeks in, I am feeling it! Nothing miraculous has occurred, but it's definitely shifted my energy and given me powerful new perspectives. It's daily “work” but I look forward to it because I can see and feel my own personal growth. 
 
 Use code LISAC for 15% off a membership. 
Explore TBM
01
The truth about dopamine
 
In this article from NPR, Neuroscientist Anne-Noel Samaha explains that dopamine is often considered the pleasure molecule, but there is actually little convincing data in science that that's what dopamine does. In fact, a lot of data refutes the idea that dopamine is mediating pleasure and instead, it's generating another emotion - desire. Your brain tells you something important is happening. So you should stay here, stay close to this thing because this is important to you. That's what dopamine does.
 
But whatever dopamine makes you want, you might not actually like it, especially over time. In fact, studies show that people can end up even hating the activity they're doing. 
 
So how do we help our kids (and ourselves) when it comes to things like screen time? This article has a few good tips. 
Read it here
03
Sex Education 101: An age-by-age guide on how to talk to kids about sex
 
Ok, I promise this won't turn into a parenting newsletter, but this resource felt too important to not share. 
 
I've been following and learning from Rosalia Rivera for quite some time now. She is a Consent Educator, Abuse Prevention Specialist, and the creator of Consent Parenting, an educational platform for caregivers. She's featured in this article on Parents.com about how to talk to kids about sex no matter what age or stage they're in. Whether talking about sex feels fraught, or you're super comfortable, this guide has some good tips on how to make it helpful. 
 
(ps. I can only add one link here because of this email template but google Consent Parenting. I've found it incredibly insightful!)
 
 
Read the article
04
Grief at a dinner party 
 
“The grieving process is undergoing its own transformation, becoming a more public and shared experience. The shift is fueled in part by the pandemic, which forced a global reckoning with grief, and a generation of digital natives, who are at ease using social media to share virtually all aspects of their lives, including grief.”
 
Grief is undoubtedly a lonely experience, but this article from the Washington Post highlights the Dinner Party, a platform for people in their 20s, 30s and early 40s grieving the death of a loved one and seeking peers, community and a meal. 
 
I love anything that brings people together with a shared purpose, and grieving together over a meal and having the chance to talk about your loved one surrounded by people who “get it” sounds like a powerful experience.
read it here
05
Image item
 
 
 
xo, Lisa Michelle
 
 

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