Following whims
Updates, invitations, and presence
Hello my dear,
Today I followed a whim.
After dropping my littles off at school, without giving it a second thought, I set out away from Portland and drove towards the breathtaking views of the Columbia River Gorge.
I knew I wanted to go, and so I did.
With the windows down, sun shining, and music playing, I smiled and danced and laughed and felt the kind of free-falling joy that is often accompanied by a bit of tenderness.
I built this life.
A life where I can do this.
Where I can honor my whims.
Slow and steady I have learned not only to listen for these whispered desires but to honor them, to let them guide me towards joy, freedom, and expansion.
I wound up in a cafe with a view of the river, an oat milk latte, and wifi that allowed me to finish my work tasks with enough time to continue on to one of my favorite viewpoints.
When I arrived at Rowena Crest, I found myself surrounded by tiny wildflowers sprinkled amongst the moss and trees.
I hiked along a tiny twisty-turny trail until I found a clearing with a little hill just right for leaning up against, and I lay my body on the earth, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath as the gentle breeze swept through the grass and danced across my eyelashes.
When I opened my eyes again, there in the blue sea of the universe was the crescent moon.
The depth of a truth welled up in me:
I am connected. I am deeply and inherently connected.
I stayed there long enough for the earth patterns of grass and leaves to imprint on my bare arms and ankles before walking back to my car filled with the kind of gratitude that comes only from pressing one's body to the earth and breathing in sync with the elements.
Life has been full and tender and hard and good and everything as of late.
I’ve been learning to find balance amongst all the doing that comes with being a business owner, a student, a mother, a partner, a human, etc.
Sometimes balance has felt possible, and a lot of times not so much.
In August of last year, I opened the metaphorical doors to my design studio.
Since opening, I’ve had the honor of working alongside my creative partner, the endlessly talented Shona Bell McCarthy, to support two incredible women-owned businesses in building their brands and bringing their visions to life.
On an adjacent path to opening my studio, I’ve continued to pursue my coaching certification and am elated (a bit of an understatement) to say that as of Wednesday next week, I will officially be a certified Wayfinder Life Coach.
My online (for now, dreams of a brick and mortar in the future) shop, Stille, continues to get closer and closer to its launch thanks to the support of my brilliant sister who has recently joined my little but wildly mighty team.
And while I grow, build, and expand in the landscape of my business, I’ve also been carefully cultivating self-acknowledgment of all the invisible jobs that I hold as a mother, partner, daughter, human, etc.
In this equally fruitful, demanding, and expansive space, we’ve witnessed Cai’s first lost tooth (why does this feel so tender!? Jeesh!) and are excited to celebrate of her seventh birthday this summer and her transition into first grade in the fall.
Omi continues to radiate all the Taurus energy with his many kisses which consist of a ritual of both cheeks, forehead, eyelids, chin, lips, and the tops of both hands before bed and at school drop off, always and without fail.
I am sipping an iced coffee and eating bites of cheesecake as I write this. It’s late, and I’ll be driving home, back to Portland, in the dark with the same smile that I set out with this morning.
I am so glad to be here with you.
I feel an excitement in the percolating energy of the nearing astrological new year and the fiery Aries season, which will usher me into my 32nd orbit around the sun on April 4th!
Sending big love,
Raina
This playlist. For dancing in the car, or on a walk, or while waiting in line at a cafe :)
This podcast episode about The Wisdom of the Butterfly. I may have shared this before but it’s I listened to it for the the fourth or fifth time this week and have decided it can’t be heard too many times.
Reminder: I am an organic creature. I am a shape shifter. I ebb and flow through this exquisitely sensitive human experience.
A magical rainbow moment earlier this week:
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A certified Wayfinder Life Coach!! 🥳 congratulations my dear. Your smile says it all. Much love xo