Creating IRL
Part 1
Lately, I’ve been feeling the quiet momentum of community weaving itself around me — through conversation, collaboration, and shared care for the place we call home.
As I root more deeply into local work, I’ve noticed how nourishing it is to show up, in real time, with real people, for what matters. I have taken about 6 months away from the grips of social media.
Really only popping into Facebook to post about local events because that is how people learn about events in my town. And enjoying occasional time on this platform.
But even the Substack app has an alghothim that can hook you.
So I have stayed away. And my oh my, how my thoughts feel clearer.
I also feel plunged into the real-time community, or rather the roots are grabbing me, whether I asked for it or not, and are keeping me in place. Looking at what and who is in front of me, with as clear of eyes as possible.
It has been a beautiful and full time and I wanted to share a few things I’ve taken part in — projects and gatherings that are planting seeds, stirring connection, and reminding me why I do this work.
At the start of the year, I was interviewed for Cordella's 19th issue, titled Mother/Land — a beautiful, women-led publication, founded by a powerful woman in our local community. This issue highlights the voices of women exploring thresholds, connection to land, mothers and motherhood, and the spaces in between.
It meant a lot to be included — not just because I got to speak about my work with death, grief, and care, but because it felt like a reflection of how these conversations are starting to ripple outward. Sometimes we do this work quietly for so long, and then a moment comes that mirrors it back to us in a new way.
One of the questions I was asked was: "Can you explain what the 'death positivity' movement is and why it’s important?" I shared that I see the death positivity movement as an expression of reclaiming ancestral wisdom and our connection to the natural rhythms on earth. People are waking up to the fact that it causes unnecessary suffering to ignore and deny the inevitability of death and grief. It's deeply inspiring to see so many feeling the call to shift collective consciousness.
Another question was: "What role do rituals or ceremonies play in helping people navigate loss?" I expressed that engaging with grief is an engagement with life. Death and grief are experiences we will all cross through, and when we suppress them, like we have been taught, we stop the flow of our life-force energy. I see grief as a teacher, with its own energy that asks to move through us. What it teaches each of us is individual, but having the support to facilitate that process is essential.
Being included in this publication, and for this specific topic, felt like an additional reflection on the rooting into land and place I am feeling in this season in life. It affirmed where I have found my feet.
You can read the full piece here if you’re curious. I highly recommend checking out the entire issue, it is gorgeous.
Gathering for the Water
Back in March, I hosted a screening of the documentary called Water is Love at Bee Kind Bakery — a small, heartfelt gathering that opened up something big. The film explores our sacred relationship with water, the impact of environmental harm, and the ways we can return to right relationship with the waters that sustain us.
What unfolded afterward was powerful: people stayed, lingered, talked. Stories were shared, emotions stirred, and a clear sense of collective care began to surface. Since then, a small group has begun to form around the idea of tending to the river together — not just through cleanups, but through deeper relational work and ongoing community connection.
It felt like a spark moment — one of those evenings where you can sense something new beginning. .
A Vessel for Movement
Shortly after this, another big assignment landed.
Something I wasn’t necessarily intending on creating, but that came to me, like a gift.
I am fresh off the heels of opening a Yoga Studio in my little town and it is something that came to be so quickly and beautifully, I am still catching my breath.
On July 9th, I birthed HeartBloom Yoga and it has been the MOST beautiful journey.
In Part 2, I will share the story of how this came to be. It has been nothing short of magic.
Until then…
CREATE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL IN REAL LIFE!!
I can’t say it, think it, feel it, enough.
It is so so important right now.
It is what is REAL.
Love you,
Lisa Marie