Last night I had the honor of holding space for the Youth and community that support them at the Youth Speaks Slam Finals. My friend @Darius Parker was the emcee and at the end of the night 6 young people moved on the be the Bay Area Youth Speaks representaitives at the Brave New Voices event where young people from across the country come together for 4 days of slams. While only 6 will be moving on, all 17 showed up and showed out. They give me hope., And while my body is tired my hart is full. The video of the amazing Abayomi whose voice, both singing and words, move me so deeply. What a gift to be able to support and hold space. I want to thank the Hope Reimagined team that has supported each slam throughout the season @Lilya Kamholtz-Roberts @Joyce Lee @Nirupama Lal @Eryn Yuen @Carmalita Johnson @Veronica Ornelas @Cecilia Tavarez . This is community healing. This is powerful and this is what can shape our future. I also added the full video with much better recording. These young people!!!

When was the last time you felt truly alive? Not productive. Not busy. Not performing wellness. But alive—in your body, in the moment, with a quality of energy that didn’t need a reason or a result. Just… here! Most of us can remember moments like that. A morning where you stepped outside and something in your chest opened. A conversation that left you vibrating with connection. Dancing, playing painting....These aren’t accidents. They’re glimpses of what your nervous system is capable of when the conditions are right. The Neuro-Somatic Integration™ Framework calls this capacity regulation—but regulation is a clinical word for something far more human. At its fullest expression, regulation doesn’t just mean “not stressed.” It means alive. It means the body has enough safety, rhythm, and connection to shift from surviving to actually inhabiting your life. Aliveness is not intensity. It’s not adrenaline or excitement or the buzz of doing more. It’s the quiet hum of a nervous system that has enough room to feel—to sense pleasure, to notice beauty, to be moved by a breeze or a voice or the weight of your own body settling into a chair. And here’s what the somatic tradition teaches us: aliveness isn’t something you earn. It’s something you uncover. It’s already in the body. It’s been there since your first breath. The work isn’t to create it—it’s to stop overriding it. We override aliveness in a thousand small ways every day; We sit still when the body wants to move. We power through when the body is asking for rest. We scroll when the body is reaching for contact. We stay indoors when the body is pulling us toward the sky. We hold our breath. We brace. We armor. And over time, the signal of aliveness gets buried under layers of doing, managing, and surviving. Richard Strozzi-Heckler, whose somatic leadership work deeply informs this framework, speaks of life energy—the felt experience of vitality that moves through the body when we are centered, present, and in contact with ourselves. He teaches that this energy isn’t abstract. It can be felt in the quality of your breath, the responsiveness of your muscles, the openness of your chest, the groundedness of your feet. It’s not a concept. It’s a sensation.

🎶 Community Check-In 🎶 If your day had a soundtrack… what song would be playing right now? Drop a song in the comments that captures:• how you’re feeling• the energy of your day• or what your nervous system is needing in this moment No explanation needed—just music as a window into where you are.Looking forward to listening alongside you. 🎧🌿 Mine is https://youtu.be/HT3d8Eq2n2c?si=b0FrfDaWSV5qH5z1 Evolution for revolution!

This time of year is often marked by rituals - rituals around light, rituals of connection, rituals that help us mark time passing and cycles changing. What rituals support you in connecting with yourself and the collective?