Dear Darlings,
For years, I’ve seen hearts everywhere. I’ve taken pictures of them when I found them. I’ve semi-noted them. I’ve used them to remind me to be kind and show love, but until now, I haven’t connected the meaning to a particular sign from above.
As you can tell, I’ve taken time to hold on to most of the hearts I see. I adore finding hearts in obscure places, but I never put together what the universe, in its infinite wisdom, was trying to tell me. I’m still unsure if I have the correct meaning, but yesterday made me stop and think.
Yesterday, I listened to Mel Robbins‘ podcast (episode 264, in case you wanted to take a listen) on controlling your mind and redirecting your energy. In this podcast, she walks her listeners through the skills to rewire their brains. While the entire episode is fantastic (especially the part with Dr. Jim Doty), I want to focus on her second skill, which is a habit she uses as a daily game to train her brain and redirect energy. Every day, she looks for hearts and says she finds them everywhere. It’s called the reticular activating system, and it decides daily which information gets into our conscious minds and what gets filtered out. She uses this game to ensure her filter is working every day.
Me? I don’t look for the hearts. They find me. They jump up and down until I notice them, and I love it when they pop into my view. I don’t think the hearts are about my reticular activating system. I think they’re about signs and synchronicities. These precious hearts are the universe’s way of showing me the love of all who walked before me, beside me, and those who will come after me.
I recently joined a large online writers’ community, and today, we had a Zoom call to meet, talk, and connect. It was an hour-long question-and-answer session for aspiring writers of all levels. We finished the meat and potatoes portion, aka the Q & A session, and then we were all encouraged to go to individual breakout rooms. The leaders said many were available, and we should pick one that spoke to us. I paged through all the groups and clicked on a Writer’s Accountability group on a whim. I joined and listened to the two women who were already there. They talked about writing, accountability, and how many hours of writing they wanted to dedicate to their craft per week. As I started to question my presence there, one of them began to talk about things in the woo-woo world I didn’t fully understand (think things like dowsing, at least, I think that’s how you spell it (I had to look it up after I got off the call)). I almost dipped out because I was uncomfortable and overwhelmed by things I didn’t understand. But something made me stay, or rather, someone made me stay. As I was preparing to hit the “leave” button, the woman talking about her work with dowsing rods addressed me. “Gotcha!” I couldn’t leave without looking like a fool. So, I stayed in that breakout room, my face a mixture of confusion, fear, and awe.
But this is where I found dessert.
There ended up being five of us in the “room.” All of us are from different parts of the world. One whose native tongue is not English, one who lives on the other side of the world, two who lean heavily into the woo-woo world, one who is just beginning her writing journey, all who are looking to publish non-fiction, teaching memoir books, delving into signs, and synchronicities. And then there was me. I was the lone fiction author, the only one who had previously published a novel, and I was also the one who felt the least knowledgeable in the group. But we got to talking, sharing, coming up with plans, and leaning into each other to help build the others up. In this room, I found dessert, and I enjoyed it with abandon!
I shared a little about the fictionalized epistolary novel I’m writing, editing, reimagining, and my current working title. I don’t want to share too much here (yet), but the underlying theme is inclusion versus exclusion. The one whose native language is not English spoke first and, in a very paraphrased way, said, “I love this. I grew up feeling the same way.” She’s working on a teaching memoir with all the signs and synchronicities from the universe that lead her to write about her experiences, working toward healing and creating an inclusive environment.
What a sign and an incredible synchronicity to land in this room of women where I can share my writing, find encouragement, get feedback, and give back to a community of women who all aspire to be authors and share a piece of precious stories with me. While I didn’t find a physical heart as I talked to them, I felt all of theirs beating in time with mine. And it’s another heart to add to my ever-growing collection.
I hope you all find your own version of hearts and share them with me!
xo,
me
A friend reached out to me after I published this with a couple of history lessons on the origins of the heart symbol. I’m linking the articles she sent. They are quick reads and well worth your time! Many thanks, Kathryn!
ENJOY
What is the Origin of the Heart Symbol
Oh, for the love of my children... 