A few days ago I went to a gathering of women for the New moon. It was my first time attending something such as this and my thorough enjoyment of it makes me eager to do it again in coming months. Among the things that really stood out to me about the experience, was just the energy of in being in the room and its effect on me.  Taking time to work through all the emotions I was feeling through journaling and meditation, listening to the stories of the other women and just being present – they’re things you would think that I would do more of because I know the benefit. But being present is something that I sometimes struggle with as my mind tends to wander andthink about the future or linger on memories from the past. But there, that night, I was centered. I felt clear on my intentions, desires, and current path.

One takeaway for me from that night was how awesome it was to hear the stories from the other women in the circle. Strangers all, but nevertheless familiar in many of the themes expressed. I never tire of the reconfirmation of how so many of us from different walks of life are often going through similar things. But in addition to that, listening to them talk, I found myself actually doing something that I don’t always do when I’m in a position to have to share: instead of planning what I would say, I focused on them. I resolved to just go with whatever moved me and embrace the comfort of being in a safe space. There are too few of those in this world.

And so that brings me to the the point of why I wanted to share about that recent experience. Being there reconfirmed to me 2 things: the importance of sharing our stories and the importance of having a safe space. As far as the first part, I’ve always believed in that, but increasingly I’m noticing that  I’m drawn hearing people share their stories about their life journey or things they have overcome and the lessons they have learned. My friends often call my a good listener because I’m good about just letting them say what they have to say (when I’m not excited and ready to jump in with my own two cents that is, lol). But really part of it is that sometimes I’m finding my own gems and “A-ha” moments from their stories. I mean I am legitimately listening, but I’m also learning and reflecting or packing away parts of what they are saying for me to process later. I know I’m not alone in doing that. As we navigate our way through life, one of the ways we grow and change our thinking is through empathy and perspective. My definitions of freedom, happiness, success, and love are evolving and part of it is through reflection and meditation about lessons I’ve learned and stories I’ve heard. I believe that part of my purpose is in sharing my story, and now I’m thinking that disseminating and sharing other stories may be part of that too.

Carving a safe space goes hand-in- hand with that as well. People feel more comfortable sharing their stories and speaking their truths in a space where they feel that they can be open and not be judged. That’s important to me in real life in every arena, including this website, my little love child. Like I’m always saying, there are not really any rules in this stage of life – particularly when it comes to dating and relationships. (Hell, more and more I think that can be said about all of adulthood though.) But in particular, my idea of being free has always been about creating and living life on your own terms and being true to yourself. So many women out here are doing that. Similarly, so many women are, like me, journeying to fully do that. And then there are those just waking up to the idea. I want everyone to feel free and I hope this can be a place for that.

So in this new moon, one where my idea of being more brave and bold and living without fear (which is its own post), I think I’ve found a lot of clarity with my next steps and direction. And what I love is that this is organic and feels like it is the natural progression of how things should be. Now I guess the question is just this: where do I get started? Who do you think I should seek to share their insights on here first?