Please clap. This is our 10th volume of the Moon Tides newsletter! I won't lie - I was real worried about remaining consistent with a weekly cadence but here we are! Thanks for reading and being so engaged with the content!
In other news, my head is spinning with all the global craziness this week.
But I had to share this BBC shade that made me chuckle, “And so the Vatican, an institution peppered with mysticism, and which still communicates via smoke signals when electing a new pope, will be hoping its new rules can regulate claims of the supernatural.” 💨
Shoes On. Eyes Open.
-Sarah
weekly highlight—
Lilith NYC Inspo: Sarah la Kali or Saint Sarah
And speaking of Catholic mysticism that I so love, this week I wanted to share a bit around some early Lilith inspiration, particularly the divine feminine & Sara(h) la Kali or Saint Sarah, as tomorrow, May 24th, marks her feast day. I came across her years ago when I was doing research on brand names and included her image on my brand moodboard.
You may recognize Saint Sarah’s image from our branding touch points: our patterned tissue paper, the lining of our shipping mailers, and packing tape.
Growing up in the Catholic Church, we were surrounded with divine feminine imagery, mainly of the Madonna. The church where I was baptized was predominantly made up of Mexican immigrants, so images of Our Lady of Guadalupe were quite common. I also attended a Catholic school that held mass for the Polish community in Queens, with some folks even traveling from Greenpoint, Brooklyn to attend. The Polish community often prayed to the Black Madonna of Częstochowa and I believe we had a framed print of her that hung above our at-home altar.
Sarah la Kali (translation: Black Sarah) or Saint Sarah, is the patron saint of the Romani people, travelers, and refugees and is believed to be the modern interpretation of the goddess Kali; Kali is known as Kali/Durga/Sara in Hinduism. Unfortunately, the Catholic Church does not acknowledge her as a “real” saint but nonetheless, every May, the Romani Diaspora community (who have ancestral roots in Northern India) gather in the Camargue region of Southern France to celebrate her. Week long celebrations culminate with a procession of her statue taken out to sea for a ceremonial bath - similar to the ways in which Kali/Durga are worshipped by Hindus today.
Unless you grew up in a family or community that played mahjong, most of us likely first learned about it through Amy Tan's amazing novel, The Joy Luck Club! I know I did. 🙋🏾♀️
The Green Tile Social Club is a mahjong community based in New York City & founded by four Asian American friends. Their goal is for a new generation of Asian Americans to fall in love with mahjong and build deeper connections to their culture. But their events are certainly not limited to just Asian folks - anyone is welcome to join and play at their weekly events which involves strategy and a bit of luck!
The article includes stories from 10 different folks on why they enjoy playing and attending Green Tile Social Club’s events. Can anyone teach me how to play before I roll up to one of these events? 🀄️ (Also, did not know a mahjong emoji existed until now!)
So saddened by this because her work is so inspiring and she made clothing that truly made you feel so femme and beautiful. Look forward to seeing what magic she creates next. ✨
A friend has been sharing photos from his trip to Japan and I noticed the photos had a beautiful film grain. Sent him a note asking if he was shooting on film but it's this digital cam with film simulations! Just gorgeous. 📷
