blessed solstice, new moon, & holiday-season, kapwa-tao!

wishing you all a nourishing, relaxing time, however you choose to spend this time.

I've got an announcement today! winter reflection & reset will be LIVE.

I wasn't going to cuz I for real want to curl up under my blanket and do my annual jigsaw puzzles :) and also, someone on the other side (idk who, maybe it's just me) kept nudging me to make this and put it out. so here I am, obedient to the orders of spirit/ancestors/whoever it is my higher self. I've been learning that NOT obeying these calls is actually *quite* painful. but, more on that later!

as a melanated person, 1st generation born off the ancestral homelands and daughter of Filipino immigrants, I can tell you firsthand:

winter is no joke. it is for REAL. SAD is REAL. the cold reaches down to the bone.

my DNA shrivels at any kind of cold. my nervous system collapses without warmth.

maybe you'll recall when back in september I started writing these notes again, that I just relocated from the Queendom of Hawaiʻi to Shoshone/Ute territory. I'm about to experience/am experiencing my first real winter in about 10 years. and even though every cell in my body protests the cold...I experienced a SEVERE drop in vitamin D, resulting in mood swings, the inability to mother, and me n baby were incredibly dysregulated for weeks...I craved this.

I was excited for this!

cuz Kanaka Maoli, specifically Lanakila Mangauil and Kaleinohea Cleghorn, taught me about Lono, about Makahiki, about how this season is meant for us to slow down, to play, to connect with ohana, to conserve our energy.

they taught me that winter isn't meant to be pushed through or hated, winter is medicine.

and its magic doesn't stop after the holidays.

but capitalism and the commercial chaos wants us to forget certain things (like the fact that Jesus was a Palestinian man born on his ancestral homelands now occupied by the same type of empire that oppressed him):

our ancestors didn't hustle through winter. they rested. they dreamed. they told stories. they played games. they prepared for the seasons to come, moving with them and leaning into the essence, the darkness of winter.

and here we are, about to be bombarded with "New Year New You" messaging that tells us to:

• Set aggressive goals
• Start new habits on January 1st
• Produce at the same pace we did all year
• Feel guilty if we're not "crushing it"

like my baby says, " no, uh-uh!"

we're not doing that.

ancestors said: winter well.

and THAT'S what we ARE going to do.

I'm offering winter reflection & reset LIVE as a three-part experience to close 2025 with intention and enter 2026 at a sacred pace.

dates & deets:

part 1: the reflection - monday, december 29, 2025 at 5pm Pacific | 7pm Central | 8pm Eastern​
honor everything you've carried in this 9 year, this cycle. release what's no longer yours to hold. connect with ancestral wisdom about darkness and sleep and rest.

part 2: the reset - sunday, january 18, 2026 at 11am Pacific | 1pm Central | 2pm Eastern​
create a values-first plan for 2026. not goals. not hustle. just alignment with what you actually want, the sun, the moon, your own body.

part 3: ways of being challenge!! ​
28-days of unlearning hustle culture and reclaiming your creative rhythm....more info to come!

here's how to join:

both workshops (reflection + reset): $33​
Everything you need to close 2025 and enter 2026 with intention.....if you already signed up for the seasonal reflection & reset at any time before this, no need to pay for this! I said that you would get all future iterations of this workshop and you get this live one, too :)

complete bundle with bonus challenge: $49​
Includes both workshops PLUS the Ways of Being Challenge in January. will share more info about the challenge after the holidays!

this isn't about setting goals or "optimizing" your life. cuz you know I'm not about productivity over here.

this is about remembering that our ancestors knew: winter is for turning inward. for rest. for reflection. for letting things compost so they can bloom in spring.

especially as part of the diaspora, we've been severed from seasonal rhythms. Wintering well is an act of ancestral reclamation.

your ancestors are rooting for you to slow down.

winter well, kabsat.
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loving you,
teresa

P.S. if you skimmed - winter reflection & reset is LIVE virtually. the reflection portion is monday, december 29 and the reset is sunday, january 18. can't make it live? you'll get the recordings. oh! and our next co-creation/co-working creating in kapwa session will be wednesday, january 7th!

P.P.S. know someone who needs this? forward this email. let's winter well together. 🕯️

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I live, work, and mother as a settler on kānaka maoli land, the island of O'ahu. In support of landback initiatives and the community here, I want to amplify the work of Oʻahu Water Protectors, The Hawai'i People's Fund, and The Hawai'i Community Bail Fund. Our support of these organizations is to support the kānaka community in defending their land and waters.

If you ever feel the need to unsubscribe, I respect that. The button is below. Thank you for reading this far.

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