Hello, and Happy New Year✨I can’t quite believe the holiday season has come and gone - winter break felt both endless and impossibly quick. Time, as ever, is an illusion.

We began the year with a potent Full Moon in Cancer on January 3rd - the sign of home, family, emotional safety, care, and belonging.

A few nights ago, I had a vivid dream. I was on a large bus filled with people on their way to a dance competition. It felt reminiscent of the cheerleading competitions I attended as a teenager or perhaps the result of watching a bit too much Dancing with the Stars this year. The bus was packed with people in spandex, buzzing with anticipation.

In the dream, I felt stressed and unsettled - unsure where to sit, who to sit with, or what to do with myself. When we arrived, I was immediately overwhelmed. I recognized people everywhere, yet I couldn’t relax. I kept worrying about where to put my things, where I belonged, where I should set up. I couldn’t enjoy the experience because I wasn’t sure where, or if, I fit in.

When I reflected on the dream, one word kept surfacing: belonging. I realized that if I had allowed myself to soften and enjoy the ride, I might have felt that sense of belonging naturally, rather than searching for it anxiously the entire time. Which feels especially poignant, given that this newsletter is called Long Strange Trip - the journey itself is the point.

Cancer teaches us that belonging is cultivated through care and compassion. Through acts of self-nurturing, we create safety within. We all long to feel accepted but is belonging something we must seek outside ourselves, or something we can grow from within?

This question led me back to a practice that began my spiritual journey: Metta, or Lovingkindness meditation. I first encountered this practice through Sharon Salzberg at the Open Center in New York City, and later through teachers like Tara Brach, Pema Chödrön, and Jillian Pransky -each offering their own doorway into this heart-centered work.

At its core, the practice is simple. We cultivate compassion and acceptance by offering phrases of loving intention to ourselves and to others. This practice helped open my heart when I was young, lost, and uncertain in New York. It has carried me through seasons of grief, separation, fear, and change - again and again, returning me to myself.

In the wake of this first Full Moon of the year, this feels like the perfect moment to revisit Lovingkindness. It’s how I want to step into 2026: with more courage, more compassion, and greater steadiness of heart.

I’m offering this meditation as the first installment of The Practice - a monthly space where I’ll share rituals, meditations, and reflective tools drawn from my spiritual work. If you feel called, I invite you to practice alongside me.

And if you’re craving deeper, personalized guidance as you begin this year - whether around relationships, purpose, or a transition you’re navigating, you’re welcome to book a Spiritual Check-In . These sessions are a space to slow down, reflect, and receive insight attuned specifically to you.

Sending you love, blessings, and peace as we begin this new cycle 🕊️

Keep truckin’,Holly

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