THE LIGHT LETTER
It turns out nerds are happier than everyone else. A study proved that people who play Dungeons and Dragons demonstrate a significant decrease in depression and anxiety. I guess there are stranger things than discovering that community and creativity are good for your soul.
This week, we’ve got great inspiration, some required reading, and a reason to dance.
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Deep Dive: Your fascia wants to dance
Your fascia is bored. Walking, yoga, lifting, and running are all amazing for strength, stability, and sanity, but they tend to repeat similar movement patterns. Fascia, the connective tissue wrapping everything in your body, doesn’t just want you to move, it wants you to move in weird ways.
If you’ve ever felt tight, achy, rigid, or limited in movement then you’re likely over the age of 30. Just kidding. Healthy fascia glides and stretches smoothly, like silk connecting everything together. But when it gets “stuck” or disorganized it limits our movement.
Fascia thrives on three things: hydration, movement, and variety. It loves when you twist, sway, bounce, shimmy, and do things that don’t fit neatly into “proper form.” Your facia is basically Whitney Houston trying to chase the blues away. It wants to dance.
So no, you don’t need to sign up for a dance class... but a kitchen dance break might help a whole lot more than you thought.
If you’re plum out of inspiration then you could always try to dance like Bruno Mars.
P.S we want to learn these moves if anyone is interested. Just saying.
This Week’s Inspiration
The best thing I watched: This 26-minute chat between Maya Angelou and James Baldwin. It’s worth watching just to see the mannerisms, the laughter, and the life in the way these two greats speak. Not to mention the casual wisdom they drop. But if you don’t have the time here are a few quotes that stuck to me.
“If you are in a position of resenting or resisting you can’t write a book, you can’t write a sentence.”“You can’t prophesize love. You’ll know, and you have to trust life.”
“All I know about human life is that if I love you, I love you. But if I love you and I duck it, I die.”
“Once you think of yourself as a success you are finished… You begin to take your identity from someone else.”
The best thing I read: A friend of mine who runs the ATX Writing Club shared a piece written by Derek Thompson. It’s a haunting explanation of why everything that is not already television, is turning into television. The line that struck me most was that this trend will continue because “the viewer bathes in a vat of their own cortisol.” It’s a reminder that one of the most important fights in our lives is for the control of our own attention.
The best random idea: Doing random fun things with your friends is what life is about. If you need a little inspiration to bring people together and have a laugh, may I recommend an adult spelling bee?
Forrest’s Notebook
I wrote this in my journal not too long ago and it has stayed with me.
Perhaps because I’ve felt myself scrolling more than I’d like.
I share it today as a reminder that it might be nice to find such a space for yourself. Even for a moment.
“Our attic isn’t anything profound. A few string lights frame a record player. Dusty and on the floor. It lacks in distraction and delivers in knowing who it is. Come to me, it says, and put to rest your soul. Here is nothing for you but a song and yourself. It is where the world disappears. Reach me, you can’t. I’m gone until I leave.”
What inspired you this week? Share it with us to get it featured in an upcoming Light Letter.
Until next time,
Live your light.