sabbatical pockets

mindfully disconnect to thoughtfully connect

If I had to choose one human as my guiding light, there would be no hesitation, it is Brené Brown. Her work, her perspective, her playful and meaningful way of looking at the world and improving other’s lives always leaves me in awe. I’m slowly making my way through her most recent book, Atlas of the Heart, reading just a little each evening before I pad into our bedroom for the night.

Last Thursday, as I read the chapter on the Places We Go When Things Are Uncertain or Too Much, it felt as though I had been setting aside a series of puzzle pieces and suddenly found the one that waterfalls them all into place. I read her words over and over to myself, ‘mindful play, or no-agenda, non-doing time, is the cure for overwhelm.’

I think it’s safe to say we’re all overwhelmed. If you’re not feeling exhausted from the global pandemic, I imagine you’re somewhat overstimulated by our always-on workplace culture, constant screen time, or the never-ending news cycle. Brené Brown is also overwhelmed, and, in her most recent awe-inducing moment, she responded by taking a summer-long sabbatical. 

Back in May, when I saw her post, I sent it to my partner with a note, ‘obsessed with this idea. i’m going to manifest us a life where we can take summer sabbaticals.’ My partner and I aren’t in a place where we can take that much time off (at this point in my career, I do some sort of work every single day), but it is a goal of mine to get us there. Non-doing time is essential and until I get us to that magical place of summer-long sabbaticals, I will craft little pockets of space that give us a similar feeling - sabbatical pockets. Tiny moments and rituals that give us space to unwind, that remind us of the importance of boundaries to our health, the need for care to prevent burnout.

I’ll continue to create these sabbatical pockets for me and my partner, but I also want to create space for others to experience them, so I birthed my pottery workshops - spaces for mindful play, for thoughtfully disconnecting from our over stimulating atmosphere in order to connect with ourselves, with others, with clay. 

I’m creating space to make something beautiful with our hands, but it’s more than that - it’s space to remove ourselves from the overwhelm of the world and mindfully focus on the tactile nature of clay in the presence of others. Slowing down and focusing on something right in front of you, that you can touch and mold and feel. 

May we all have the space and time to create sabbatical pockets, no matter how small. May we mindfully disconnect so we can thoughtfully connect. 

• Grab your spot for my fall workshops! You can find all the dates and sign up here. I can’t wait to experience a sabbatical pocket with you.

• If you can’t join me for an in-person workshop, here are a few ideas of how to incorporate mindful play into your life:

  • order a mindful clay play at home kit

  • download my mindful coloring pages and set aside a time to focus on the page in front of you (I just created these so the options are limited to this one page, but if there’s interest I’ll be making more!)

  • sign up for my mindful pottery subscription and get a mindful moment with bespoke pottery each month

  • set aside time to read a mindful book that you can page through with no pressure (may I suggest Atlas of the Heart!!!!)

• This week’s pinterest vibe collage:

• My messy studio photo this week is a post-glazed, pre-fired boob mug. I’m using a new wax resist that leaves her nipples a goofy blue color. Wax resist is a technique where I apply wax to a part of a pot so the glaze doesn’t stick there. It’ll burn off during firing and she’ll look completely transformed when she emerges from the kiln. I’ll share next week!

Thank you, thank you for being here and reading my words.