Sept. 13, 2021, 1:05 p.m.
167 THINGS TO DO ALONE AFTER THE SUN GOES DOWN
A collaborative list
Monday Monday
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My alone time practice is rusty. During the day it’s easeful and I crave it. If I am home with other people I can put my noise cancelling headphones on and zone out and feel like I am by myself. Writing, quilting, planning online classes, walking June, day baths, naps, watch a show, dance, listen to music, read, meditate
Did you know I meditate now? Did you know I never really have? And by “meditate now” I mean three days in a row. Also I made a god box - highly recommend - it means you say a lot less shit out loud that doesn’t need to be said out loud. God is in the pause.
As someone who lived in a cabin alone in a eucalyptus grove by the ocean, unpartnered, relishing in evenings alone day after day, it can feel a little embarrassing to be so out of practice. I am constantly humbled by how being in relationship with another human requires a constant remembering of the self. How easy it is to forget the self within partnership, how easy it is to all of a sudden be faced with being alone for one single night and go into a complete freeze of - what will I do now?
I asked the people of the social media cosmos : What do you do alone after the sun goes down? I am pleased to share the list of ONE HUNDRED SIXTY SEVEN activities. Thank you to everyone who shared.
Carving out alone time at night has become restful, joyous, pleasurable, and transformative for my nervous system. My friend Stevie recently said to me - “Marty, I think you’re just bored.” In the age of so much doing I see being bored as celebrated. This works for a lot of people. For me being bored is a sign I am not in my own life, my hobbies, the possibilities that await me and that I am called to do. Working on becoming a better friend to myself has become a task of action, not of thinking.
The thing about needing to keep remembering myself over and over is it never takes as long as I think it will. Not avoiding pain or seeking pleasure, luxuriating in coming back to myself over and over again. Not a signal of weakness but a symbol of willingness.
167 THINGS TO DO ALONE AFTER THE SUN GOES DOWN
MY PERSONAL FAVORITES :
◭ Watch 90’s Shania Twain videos and dream
◭ Draw in my sketchbook and watch Bachelor in Paradise
◭ Read The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
◭ Listen to Octavia’s Parables podcast
◭ Listen to plant medicine podcasts or watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer
◭ Reading paperbacks in the bath
My current ones :
◭ Hand Quilt while I watch Friday Night Lights
◭ Read Zen Mind, Beginners Mind
◭ Listen to When Things Fall Apart
◭ Watch documentaries
Ones I want to do more of :
◭ Watercolor Quilts
◭ Stretch
◭ Cast spells
◭ Step work
There are seasons of my life that require more paying attention to the self, dying 100 ego deaths. As Pema Chodron teaches me : Every out breath is a death. I am excited to talk more about this, devotion, abandoning hope, and inviting more awe into our practice in From Discipline to Devotion - the workshop I am hosting this Sunday!
Want to dig in deeper to excavating the self centeredness of creation to call in more room to the devoted parts, cultivate less clinging to discipline, and hang out with other people on the internet who want to make lists and create outlines for personal and together visions of getting unstuck in art making, business, and hobbies?!
It has been of great interest to me to cultivate a more compassionate inner voice when the simple act of showing up becomes an insurmountable hurdle : This class is how I do it!
moving from rigidity to awe so you may be of maximum service
Live on Zoom : Sunday September 19th at 10am PST / 1pm EST
Class is sliding scale $44 - $88 - pay more to provide flexibility for others, pay $44 to pay the cost of class ⌓ Closed Captions provided live and with the replay
If you’re feeling stuck and like you can’t even sit down to SEE what you are devoted to, let alone bring it into your art : this workshop is for you!
It sounds like people want dance class. I want to bring back the New Hope Dance Series as a pay what you can monthly (twice a month?!) dance class that serves as a model for financial redistribution. And teach a class on tending to your solo dance practice. And I want to be in meadows again with you in real life. Here is a survey you can fill out to tell me if you want dance class.
Many Blessings
⌇⋰Quilt Class : October registration is open
⌇⋰ email : info@marleegrace.space
A portion of this month’s paid subscriptions goes towards Trans & Queer Youth Nola : Hurricane Ida Mutual Aid Assistance- as does 10% of From Discipline to Devotion