How do you find ease?

And how do you sustain it?

Hello reader,

Welcome to my first newsletter! I’m so grateful you’re here.

Ever since I chose “Finding Ease” as the title for my YouTube Channel and newsletter, I’ve been thinking about what gives me ease and how that’s shifted and changed over time. Sometimes it’s doing yoga, dancing, taking a nap, eating a piece of cake, holding a cup of warm tea, gardening, or texting with a friend.

I used to find ease through playing flute, which led me to major in music in college. But it gradually became too associated with my identity and my worth to the point where I gave up playing it for years. Now I am now slowly getting back into it, seeing if I can rekindle that sense of fun and joy.

Sometimes I can find ease as quick as a thought, like when I’m petting my cats. And sometimes finding ease can feel extremely elusive, like when you lose your keys. (I *just* had them. Where did they go? How did I lose them again!?)

My cat Cleo

But whatever it might be or look like, the effect is always the same. Finding ease for me is tapping into a deep sense of comfort in my body, clarity in my mind, and connection to my spirit.

It often feels like the whole world is conspiring to pull us out of ease. The responsibility of keeping ourselves and our loved ones alive when we’re inundated with messages telling us what’s wrong ourselves can feel daunting. This is especially true for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, non-binary, and disabled folks. It can make the act of finding ease all the more difficult, yet all the more vital.

In Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto, author Tricia Hersey invites us to explore what the world would be like if we were well-rested and to consider how rest is foundational to healing and justice. Similarly, I see finding ease as a simple but profound practice of liberation. I believe that when you give yourself permission to find your ease, you give others that same permission.

So I’m giving you permission to find your ease. I’ll be using this newsletter and my YouTube Channel to support you with yoga, meditation, and breathwork practices. In the meantime, consider getting out a journal or opening a note taking app and jotting down your response to these questions:

1. What does feeling a sense of ease mean to you?

2. When was the last time you felt ease?

3. What pushes or pulls you out of feeling ease?