Inspiration station: July Faves! ✨Healing✨
This month i'm sharing nuggets from the internet that inspire healing. You can interpret your own meaning from that word, but essentially, i hope that this collection offers inspo for introspection, more self care, more self love and space for you to take what you need. love, dionne x
My summer self care morning routine and rituals.
The gory details of what i get up to every morning, plus lots of my tips and recommendations for creating the stuff in your life that helps you to feel tip top.
Interested in making a day of self love for yourself? 945 have you covered!
Honoured to be featured here alongside one of my all time fave clips (and mantras) by muse Eartha (very deeply Ethel - my alter ego) on love and compromise.
Podcast: Lecker
Most folks know i'm massively into food. Not just the eating part (obviously that's a big part!), but also the journey of ingredients to the plate, the symbolism, ritual and journey, through culture, roots and lineage. Food is emotive for many reasons and deeply connected to the personal, our communities, our origins and our environments. So this has been one of my fave podcasts of late, merging personal stories and food. This episode was a particular gem.
"It’s OK that you don’t know what the future holds."
"...you are searching. seeking in every corner and pocket of the world for who you are. take your time, baby girl. there’s no rush to get there. you will sow each of these chapters in the land that you become. you will see bits and pieces of them scattered into the skin you grow into. you don’t have to figure everything out now. time will reveal itself. i promise you.
sometimes you push these phases to the max, and when you go out into the world feeling confident in who you are and what you reflect, young folks will call you names and grown folks will call you names. It’s ok. one day you will name yourself, and that name will belong to you. it will not be the ones they ordained: “crazy, ugly, attention-seeking, weirdo.”
i really hate to tell you this, but sometimes you will still get called these things as an adult, except you will actually embrace some of them. you will learn that these are just words. words that only have power if you choose to give them power. every once in a while they will hurt, but you will choose to turn those words into a symbol of beauty."
July playlist: Vibes Immediately! ✨🍔
Sound sandwich inspo for life + from my events curated by me + updated on the regular 4U2 enjoy (follow 4 updates!) Vibe wherever you might be - on the run, having a bathroom disco or laying in bed eating pie (or, like, having a like rilly serious yoga practice or something…)
Useful tool: Facebook News Feed Eradicator
If like me you have a complicated relationship with Facebook (i.e find the newsfeed draining/distracting/triggering/soul destroying yet still want to stay connected to good people) here's something i've found useful this month.
The news feed eradicator replaces your newsfeed with a quote. Sure some are cheesy but the main point is that it blocks the feed which means less of those "i'll just pop onto facebook to update something..." which inevitably turns into a 40 minute rollercoaster drudgefest that zaps your energy and leaves you exhausted and wanting to shut your account down (again!)
It means you have more energy for intentional connection, i think. You'll need to be using Google Chrome for this one.
Are you using this app? Or have any useful tools you use? Let me know in the comments!
Film: Aquarius
Perhaps i need to start a new column called "Ethels Muses" because queen Sonia is right up there for me. Aquarius was surely my fave film of the month and i really recommend it. It's beautiful and real and relevant to all of us.
Sidenote: you'll find it on Netflix!
Akinola is one of those good people. So many skills. So much wisdom. This interview is great and full of insightful nuggets. Recommend you diving into his catalogue for some deep healing through beauty.
New film + art by Cecile Emeke
When The Ancestors Came accompanies the Tate’s current exhibition Soul Of A Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power which is on until October 22nd. Link for that is here.
Photograph by Mo www.phobymo.com
I love this piece via The Hoodwitch. Hope you do too.
"Witchcraft is a work of gratitude. It comes from the practice of honoring the people, land and animals that came before you, that coexist with you now and that have yet to arrive. Witchcraft is the work of the wise because it is the everyday practice of those who are humbled by the world around them. Witches find meaning in the mundane and see the magic in weeds growing through cracks in the sidewalk or a shed feather of a dirty bird. Witches are rememberers, mourners and healers because they have reconciled with the cycles of life and realized what is and is not in human hands. Witchcraft is about gratitude and alignment, treading lightly and respectfully and only taking what you need. We must remember that witchcraft is less about control and more about connection. A connection to our own divinity, but also an understanding of the limitations of it."
Cuddling May, the Cat (ASMR whispering)
the world of asmr is a fascinating one!
PHOTOGRAPHED BY MOLLY CRANNA.
if you´ve ever felt intimidated to show up at a yoga class because you don´t see yourself represented in "mainstream yogaland", i FEEL you. i still avoid certain spaces as it´s deeply triggering tbh. please read this and be reassured there is space for you to do you on this planet, that ANY body can practice, and that i´m committed to continue to keep trying to be as inclusive and accessible as possible whilst dismantling these eyerolling myths along the way, you with me? love to you!
Take care of your mental health. Never feel ashamed at needing help or support. This is an inspiring film.
102 Likes, 5 Comments - dionne (@dionne_______) on Instagram: "It all comes FROM you babes. So try to make some space to do the things that help you feel good..."
155 Likes, 10 Comments - dionne (@dionne_______) on Instagram: "Reminder 〰 Poem from nejma by @nayyirah.waheed 🙏🏾"
When Your Teacher Keeps Saying You Can’t Draw Cats, But Your Paintings Are Photorealistic
Trust in what drives you, babes. Don't let anyone pull you away from what's meaningful to you!
"You don't always have to be doing something. You can just be, and that's plenty"