Friday Musings—Unity

What's new with me

It's been a week filled with connection, both online and offline. I'm wondering if my yoga practice last weekend had anything to do with it. The teacher has been doing a chakra series, and on Sunday we worked on our crown chakra. When balanced or activated, this chakra is associated with a sense of unity—that everything and everyone is interconnected—and a feeling of being guided or attuned to something larger than oneself.

Now, you may believe in this or not (I'm still a bit of an agnostic myself), but the reality is that this past week I did feel much more connected to the world than I normally do. I went to a few in-person events and met new people, I volunteered for a role with the local GGI (Girl Gone International) community, and just felt more open and less preoccupied with my usual woes (gut issues, acne, family worries etc.).

I also finally got my period and was therefore able to go to the hospital to do some additional blood tests. I couldn’t book a slot in advance, so I was expecting a long, stressful wait. But I ended up feeling surprisingly relaxed: I chatted a bit with the other people waiting, listened to a podcast episode, and let my mind wander for a bit. The nurses and staff were kind and efficient, and the whole thing took less time than I feared. I went back home feeling my faith in humanity a bit restored 🙂

Digital days

A couple of the events I attended this week were part of Turin's Digital Days initiative, a series of talks and workshops by people and companies showing how new technologies are shaping our world.

As you know, I'm interested in how technology affects our lives and relationships, and I've already shared articles and reflections over some of the pros and cons of the digital age we're living in. It's undeniable that AI in particular is going to cause a lot of disruption. However, some of the presentations showed how it can also help us work faster, better, and even more creatively. As one of the speakers put it: “Be inspired by intelligence. Of any kind”. I know it's a complex issue and that change can be challenging, but I think it's a good reminder that we should strive to be aware, not anxious.

Why so serious?

After last week's musings, where I shared my current grounding practices, one of you emailed me to suggest I add one other method to cope with challenging times, and that is laughter and humor! Adding that the more insane the current events, the crazier one must laugh. The email ended with a beautiful quote by John Gay: “Life is a jest, and all things show it; I thought so once, and now I know it”. Thanks, John!

It reminded me of a coach I met a few years ago, MJ, who used to say that humor had helped her make it through a very difficult cancer ordeal. By always striving to find something to laugh about in every situation, she made life easier for both herself and all the people around her—family, friends, hospital staff—and this positivity probably sped up the recovery process as well.

Quote of the week ✍️ 

"We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep".  (William James)

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts. If you have any suggestions or insights, feel free to share them in the comments. And if you know someone who might enjoy my musings, please pass this along, I’d love to grow this community.

Until next time,

ML