Rest…is the conversation between what we love to do and how we love to be.
David Whyte
In the midst of wintertime and a tumultuous world, I’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of rest. I arrived at MEA in 2023 during a “lifequake” that left me unmoored, exhausted, and searching for a fresh sense of possibility – a reclaiming of my life. I’d just left a fulfilling yet stressful leadership role, moved back to Santa Fe after 22 years in Silicon Valley, became an empty nester, and started a new relationship. Though I knew (generally) who I was, I struggled with where I belonged and how to serve next. And – I was exhausted. I came to MEA primarily to rest and recharge. To leave myself alone for a hot minute.
Initially, I saw rest as a “time out” between my past and future. But as I floated in the Baja pools and connected with my compadres, I realized rest is not a passive interlude. It’s an intentional practice of softening, letting go, and creating space every day. I discovered rest as essential to both doing and being.
That time at MEA began a 9-month period of not just rest but of full permission to leave myself alone for a bit, try out some things, and bump into the world in new ways. I rented out my house. I volunteered with whale shark research. Learned Spanish. Went places and meandered. Wrote. Found more pieces of who I am and what is important to me now. In the process I learned that I do not actually want to be a marine biologist, that my values had new depth from my 54-year-old vantage point, and that I wanted to continue my work as an educator and change-agent – just in new ways that allowed for new growth. I learned to give space to that internal conversation between doing and being. It continues to be a work in progress.
A year and a half later, I’m part of the MEA team – something I could never have imagined that summer of 2023. And each cohort that comes to Rising Circle Ranch reminds me of the power and practice of rest. That rest is often a courageous act, even and especially amidst uncertainty. I am grateful for the places, people, words, and all of the extraordinary and ordinary things that hold space for the pauses.
I wish you all many moments of rest.