2021 In Bloom
“One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice —
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
”Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voice behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do —
determined to save
the only life that you could save.”
I chose the art vs artist collage style post on Instagram instead of the apps choosing my best/top nine for me as a visual homage and recap of the creating I did this year. I wanted to decide on and take some time to do my own reflection on 2021. *Productivity* is subjective. And my accomplishments this year are pretty major to me, while not at all centered around *the hustle*. I quit a gym this year instead of joined one. My mental and physical health depended on it. I traded in the intensity for moderate weightlifting at home, then looked to myself and my two legs and took to the streets, trails, and mountains. I left a city and (most of) my earthly belongings to hop in my car with Fins and Pito in search of connection to myself, nature, others, and the unknown. I’ve had two new therapists, and did (and am continuing to do) a massive emotional overhaul and deep dive into some next level healing. I invested in myself and in my Moondrop in some new ways. I treated myself and my little moon business to a day long photoshoot with the incredibly talented photographer, Gabe Aragon, and his beautifully gifted girlfriend (and my former hairstylist), Diana. I also decided to let go of my self perpetuated need to create for sales, take some pause, and step away from the e-commerce side of my Lunarverse. It’s been hard to watch algorithms change, watch my fellow makers try to keep up and stay on the radar and struggle. The platform that literally launched me into the world, has seemingly left us in the cosmic dust. Oh well! All the more reason for my pause. I definitely wrestled with what Moondrop Collective is overall and what it means to me this year. I am so lucky that it can be whatever I want it to be, and can allow for the inevitable change of shape, as life is always changing. Moondrop was a gift to me. A download from the magick of the Universe. (There’s a great story there if you ever want to hear more about it — I tell some of it in the linked podcast episode on my home page.) I was in a receptive place at the right time. And the moment I try to put it into a box, is the moment it eludes me. It’s a fascinating creative and spiritual dance. It’s art, and soul, and magick. The Moondrop is the gift, the Collective is all of us. That feels pretty effing profound to me. Engaging with this online community has fueled and fostered the growth my baby Lunarverse has seen over the last 4 years. I’ve made some beautiful connections with other creators, and those of you who have purchased something from me, and collaborated with me. But now it’s time to step outside of the Instagram box and get into the realness of life with people, places, and things. Below is a small collection of some of the magick I’ve made with my heart and hands this year. And I cannot wait for what’s now and what’s next. Thank you, so so much, as always, for being with me in this.
The next post will be as I’m getting on the road for the next leg of the travel adventures! I’ll be making stops in Nashville TN, Fort Smith AK, and Amarillo TX! Stay tuned for cutie pics of me, my pets, my friends, my fun Airbnbs, and some more magical scenery courtesy Momma Earth.
xoxo,
Jessica, Finley, and Pito
