courage, connection and keeping it real in 2024
Now playing: "Friends" by Whodini
Normally, I’d wait until spring to get back into my creative bag, but with the nudges from my folks, the universe, and God left and right, I’ve decided not to wait and BEGIN now. I don’t know about ya’ll but the beginning of 2024 shook the table—literally, New Year’s Day brought an earthquake. Since then my efforts to keep up physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually hasn’t been a cake walk; it’s been more like a tiptoeing on a tightrope. However, I’m here to bless ya’ll with my presence and to let you know that if I can get to this other side of thriving, so can you. Okay, let’s get into it.
I’m two months in on this “Mareesa Allyse Era” embodying connection and acceptance, and I’m now at the intersection of empowering myself to be more courageous so that I approach situations with more honesty. On this current episode of keeping it real, my recurring knee injury has not only limited my mobility for the past 8 months but also exposed me to a level of disconnect with myself I didn’t know existed. Through many sessions of physical and mental therapy I’ve learned to accept where I am right now and challenge myself to share more of ME this era. And in this space. Because yes, life be lifing, but who says we have to navigate it alone.
My wellness challenge as of late has me thinking a lot about friendships and my pursuit of connection over the years. My word this year is CONFIDENCE, and each month, I want to focus on how to be more confident in all aspects of my life, starting with the forever hot topic of relationships. Recently, while checking emails, I came across Kat Vello’s newsletter, where the speaker and author of We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships dropped the following journal prompt and I couldn’t help but go hmm:
“How have you been using your courage in your pursuit of connection?”
The timing of this, wow. As I steer away from trauma bonds and proximity, I find myself in pursuit of deeper connection with people of similar interests that align with the woman I’m becoming today. I’ve always craved connection but I find myself more intentional with my time these days and my knee injury essentially forced me into this space. I’m grateful to have best friends that can evolve with me on their own life path and I appreciate the mutual understanding however, it’s also important for me to have my own outside connections as a multi-passionate person so I can steady evolve. I wouldn’t ask my introverted book worm friend to join me at a rager of a dance party (ok I’m being a dramatic) but you catch my drift. What’s different for me now is I am learning how to better navigate connections and understanding more and more which ones have the capacity to shift and change with my current needs.
As most of the collective is shifting into their life’s purpose while ending karmic cycles, healing from generational and ancestral wounds - our connections and friendships are shifting as well. Since I’ve relocated and within the last year, I have experienced major shifts in all of my connections and it amazes me everyday how it continues to unfold and align with my desires and expectations. None of my best friends are in close proximity, I’m talking at least a few cities over or more, so I have been challenged in this era to get clear on what it is I desire out of connect first, then pray and ask for it and position myself to obtain closeness and the support needed.
Honestly, my dream is to have a house big enough for all of my loved ones to come hangout, escape, eat delicious meals and spend time with each other at our leisure.
I’m really out here challenging myself in ways I’ve never been accustomed to and it sure is a very vulnerable time for me but I’ve unsubscribed to the strongblackwoman archetype to fully embrace my healing girl era. As someone who has spend most of my life surrounded by many friends and associates, it wasn’t until I started to enforce boundaries and put energy into people who didn’t mishandle my light that I could finally flourish in my connections. Don’t get me wrong, I can be around anyone but there’s something about having a safe place to land and to just BE around people that really don’t play about me.
Okay, I’m going to pause here and let this simmer a bit while I get ready for March. While you’re thinking about connection and what it means for you, why don’t you give my latest spotify playlist as listen here and let me know what you think. As I am focused on healing my knee I can’t help but be hella excited for all that God has in store for me on the other side of that so look out for more of my musings as the year becomes more profound and ethereal than ever. Tell a friend, to tell a friend cause ya girl is baaaack!
Love,
Mareesa Allyse <3
Well said. Keep doing you as you navigate this crazy world.