TLDR: I built a tool that reconnects you to nature in your business (and regular) life.
Following a regular workday/week/quarter schedule and mapping my business goals to that never felt good. Doing business things always felt off and forced, and I finally figured out why.
Doing that completely separates my business life from nature and the living world — and guess what?
I AM the living world.
Of course, it doesn’t feel right to work on a business timeline built by the patriarchy to feed the patriarchy, one that is completely detached from what the whole living world is doing.
This became crystal clear last year as we approached the Winter Solstice (Yule). All I wanted to do was cozy up, eat comfort foods, do crafts, think big thoughts, and go outside in the snow to enjoy the quiet.
And what is the dominant culture pushing during this time of darkness and slowing down? Endless shopping, running around, parties, commitments, end-of-year goals, close your books, get your 1099s and W2s out, bake 1,000,000 cookies, make your kids’ consumerist dreams come true! And, don’t forget to figure out what you did badly so you can set a resolution to be a better, more productive person in the next Gregorian calendar year.
F to the hell no.
Winter is the time to go inward, to slow down, to pare down and survive together. My guidance to myself at that time:
The Earth has reached its furthest tilt from the sun: this is the longest night, the bottom of the arc, the place where everything stops before it turns back toward the light. In the Midwest, the ground is locked under frost, the trees stripped to their bones, the landscape offering nothing decorative, only structure. The Wheel has come to Yule, and the invitation is not to produce or to push: it is to sit in the dark long enough to hear what wants to be born.
That is the exact opposite of what capitalism and the patriarchy is pushing. And why do you think that is? Why would those systems of control and extraction want to keep you separated from nature and, ultimately, yourself?
They’ve convinced most people this is the only way — through social pressure, FOMO, and conditioning. And then when you burn out, they tell you: that must be because you’re defective and doing something wrong.
You were never defective. The system is abusive.
When I get stressed, the best thing, in addition to yoga and boxing, is to go outside and get into the ground. I have a big garden that I adore. I go for a lot of walks. And my office is literally in the earth, in the basement, like a big Mother Earth Cave. I love it. It’s my favorite place, where I work, think, create, and meditate.
Then my basement flooded, and I got kicked out of my sanctuary.
I was upset for the first few hours while dealing with the destruction. But soon I realized it was a gift: a chance to start over, to build everything back better, to pare down and grow what is meaningful.
All of this happened right around the spring equinox, Ostara. The time of rebirth and planting what is to come.
Now, at the Summer Solstice, I’m feeling grounded and ready. I’m in the process of clearing my head, clearing my time, and focusing on what I want to harvest in the latter part of this year. My guidance to myself right now:
The moon is building toward full, and so are you — whether you’re ready to admit that or not. It’s early summer in the deep sense, everything leaning hard into its own growth before the slow turn back begins in six weeks. This is the moment to look at what’s actually coming up in your life. Not what you planned — what’s here.
I built this tool that gives me daily work-centric guidance based on what nature is doing, shared it with a few people, and the response was incredible.
Now I’m working on publishing it on my website so every one of you can find your way back to nature — back to yourself. Sign up for my newsletter, and when it’s ready, you’ll get your own daily nature-based guidance delivered to you every day.
Welcome home.
Love,
Emily
P.S. Right now, this is configured for my latitude, in the Midwest, where we experience major seasonal changes.