Venture Beyond

February tends to center the conversation around love, but often only in its most visible form—romantic connection, adorned in sentiment and celebration. And while that version has its place, the deeper truth is that love, at its core, is a practice. It’s how we relate, how we show up, and how we grow—not just in partnership, but in how we engage with ourselves.

When entered into with presence and care, romantic relationships can become powerful sites of joy and awakening. They allow us to experience connection, tenderness, and intimacy in ways that feel expansive. But they also inevitably surface the parts of us that are still in process—the stories, fears, and reactions we might prefer to keep hidden. This is not a flaw in love. It is part of what makes love a path of transformation.

In my own journey, I’ve come to understand that what we bring to a…

Last month, we focused on community—the people who hold us, witness us, and enrich our experience of life. But just as connection is essential, there are moments when the need for solitude emerges with equal force. Times when the most honest path forward begins not with more engagement, but with a quiet turning inward.

Stillness, in its truest form, is not an absence. It is a heightened presence. It is the intentional act of reducing external input so we can finally hear ourselves clearly. Over the years, I’ve come to understand that stillness enters my life in different ways.

There are seasons when it arrives uninvited—triggered by loss, change, or rupture. Those times often feel like isolation, like life has removed the usual rhythms without asking. And yet, in those spaces, I’ve met aspects of myself I might never have encountered otherwise. Other times, I find myself longing for stillness.…

Every year, beginning in November, I naturally start turning inward. I go back through the months slowly—no rush, no pressure—and I review my life in every one of its dimensions: personal, professional, relational, emotional, physical. I take my time. I look at what grew, what challenged me, what surprised me, and what I want to carry forward.

And then, little by little, I start clearing space for the new year.I clean out my closet. I organize my home. I reach out to friends I may have unintentionally drifted from. I prune, I release, I make room.This has become my ritual—simple, grounding, intentional.

Recently, I had an interesting conversation with one of the coaches in our community, Ahtziry García, licensed psychologist and Chinese medicine Doctor, about New Year rituals—what they mean, where they come from, and why this moment of the year holds so much energy for reflection. She spoke about the…