Māmā melodies: Surprising inspiration and tuning in to what I really need

I was sitting in my office feeling crampy and a bit stuck and then I had some old stuff activated in my system. My drive for mahi (work) was low. I started working on arbitrary things, because I couldn’t focus on what really mattered. 

And then I remembered some wisdom from Lucy Aitkenread and a few others who have also been chewing my ear off about how taking care of myself is at the forefront of being able to mother, run a business, and homeschool. So I left. I left the office, with my cacao in my thermos, and I came here. Te Waikoropupu Springs. I walked slowly and intentionally. I noticed the small mushrooms peeking out from the dirt. The kind that need ample conditions to grow and only appear at certain times of the year. And I was once again reminded of how cyclical we are. My body is needing rest, and comfort, not productivity and hussle. It needs nourishment and slowness, to recover from busyness and big weeks. 

I hugged the Grandmother tree and my inner voice told me to visit more often. 

And as I rounded back into the carpark, surprisingly, the words of Dr. Phil came into my mind - “if you’ve always done what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” It felt weird to me that this would come to me at this time - a quote from a man who made himself famous by unpacking trauma for daytime tv entertainment. And yet, here was the thought anyway. 

And it reminded me about stuckness in general and how we can feel so frustrated and impatient about progress (or lack there of). How we can feel the discomfort of something that’s not working, and yet, persist on doing the same thing over and over again anyway. Now that I write this, I realise this has been coming up for me quite a bit actually…

And that’s why I left the office. To get back in touch with nature, to wander slowly when I feel overwhelmed with ‘to do’s’, to take time out when I feel this pressure to be super productive… because I knew if I nourished me, the words would come, the mahi would come, the ideas would come and the drive would return. 

And so I wondered - is there anywhere that you are feeling stuck? Is there something that isn’t working for you? A parenting challenge that you haven’t quite figured out? A theme from your birthing experience that keeps popping up? Something that isn’t shifting, but is trying to tell you it wants to?

I’m right here with you and I’d love to support you to feel it to heal it. 

Last month I hosted The SEEN documentary with a dear friend of mine in our small town and we had an amazing turn out and many, many tears. If you haven’t got along to see it near you yet, I highly recommend it, and they have an online viewing coming up. 

And here’s your Māmā Melody!

This month my baby turned 8 years old and that has me flipping out! To shift some of the energy in my system, I’ve been belting this out in the car on the way back from training - Shackles - Steven Rodriguez and also Wild Stare by the Giant Rooks 

Thank you so much for being part of my community. I appreciate you!

Sending you so much love and compassion and honouring all that you’re doing,

Arohanui,

Kirsty

Te Waikoropupu Springs