October feels like an energetically dense month, to me. We celebrate both Libra and Scorpio season. Eclipses are incoming. The transition of the seasons is well and truly being felt in the every day. Summer quietens and darkens into early Autumn. Winter opens up into the sweetness of Spring.
As someone who loves astrology, has an ever deepening relationship with the cycles of the moon and who runs a business based on the energetic days of the week, I also have to opt out of astrological content, regularly, to maintain my own inner peace.
An example: a couple of days ago, I was having one of those days where everything felt incredibly sweet. Work was flowing. I loved my outfit. My hair was behaving herself (a rare occurrence). It was a truly ordinary day, but I was feeling delighted and excited to be alive. Likely a combination of being in my favourite city in the world, the temperature dropping from actual inferno to just regular hot and an overflow from hosting a truly special retreat last week.
But.
Later that evening, ever so innocently, I read a very well intentioned post about the upcoming full moon and suddenly I felt my stomach drop.
It’s going to be a rough one. Things will fall away. The rug might be swept from out beneath your feet. Saddle up guys, this one is going to be a RIDE.
In an instant, my stomach dropped.
While my logical brain knows everyone feels these moments differently, and astrology will never override my actual, lived experience, unless I give it the power to do so (who me? 🤪) for a few moments, I found myself shifting into battle mode:
I wonder what’s going to go wrong? What’s going to fuck up? What's going to fall away?
How stupid, how naive of me to be excited today, it’s probably never going to work out.
I should prepare for the worst.
This was honestly my thought process.
Is this not *completely* insane?
Luckily, this time, it only lasted a second or two and I was soon able to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all, before being slightly concerned, knowing eclipse season is incoming, knowing my social media space is about to be filled with make the most of this energy and prepare for shit to hit the fan (or something slightly more eloquent than that).
I know I probably don’t need to say this but also:
This is not any criticism towards astrological content, AT all.
Discovering and understanding the rhythms of the cosmos over the last few years has been supportive and deeply validating for me. I have astrology readings a couple of times per year and find it not only insightful, but practically useful in my business and my life.
And yet.
As someone who can be influenced by the external, by the other (hellooooo pisces sun and very open human design chart) I personally have to be careful of how much astrological forecasting I consume.
You might be excellent at reading this kind of stuff and leaving it.
I know myself well enough to know that this is *not* my strength.
I know myself well enough to know that I’m better off going about my own merry way until I find myself in a space of: ooooooooooookay, WTF IS GOING ON, at which point, my favourite astrological wizards will have healing balms and words I can wrap around myself like a warm hug.
That’s when it feels right for me.
That’s when it really makes sense.
So as we move forward into this month where change is afoot, maybe because it’s eclipse season, maybe because the seasons have changed, maybe because you’re literally a human on the earth where the only thing we know is that change is constant, and we have zero control…
The focus in The Daily Rest Studio is Healing Through Beauty because regardless of whether we’re fighting off multiple eclipses and retrogrades with energetic baseball bats, or the stars are in absolute perfect alignment (does that ever happen?!) life is still going to be weird and hard and awkward and unexpected a lot of the time.
Regardless of our spiritual practice or background: most of us can agree a sunset, an oceanview, a tiny child’s laugh, a whole field of flowers in bloom or just a really great manicure can sometimes fill us with more joy, confidence and TRUST in the world and ourselves than just about anything else.
This month, can we continue along our path of self discovery while still being the person we’ve always been?
And can we see the person we’ve always been as Extremely Excellent and simply in need of a little more acceptance and love rather than someone who has to change completely?
Can we commit to our yoga practice because we love it, because it improves our lives and know that is enough?
Can we develop and maintain our wholesome, healthy habits without demonising anything that doesn’t fit that mould exactly?
Side note:
I am currently working on a long essay here for the paid subscribers community about the long standing war many of us have waged against our ‘girly’ ‘feminine’ ‘cute’ or ‘high maintenance’ sides and interests in order to be seen as smart, cool, serious or spiritual.
What started as a personal experience piece is growing, as I’m noticing this is a topic many others have been reflecting on recently as well.
If you have any experience with this yourself, and wish to share, please leave a comment below. I would love to include multiple perspectives here, if you’re interested in contributing.
🌸 The October List
〰️ The only series I’ve watched in a really long time (aside from Terrace House). Colourful, cute, sad, frustrating and completely hilarious.
〰️ Cut me open and you’ll find this tea flowing through my veins. There is no better summer drink. Caffeine free and mineral rich, it’s way more hydrating than water.
〰️ Trying to convince myself I don’t need this bag in every colour…
〰️ Crazy for anything bow related atm. I mean this whole collection I’m crying !!
〰️ Okay more bows.
〰️ This hydrating mist from my favourite natural J beauty brand which I instinctively reached for as the humidity dropped a few days ago. I love it over make-up!
〰️ I’ve been travelling with this to make my morning coffee and while it’s no Chemex, it’s been one of the best things I’ve packed.
〰️ Why am I so obsessed with this.
〰️ Honestly I don’t like deodorant but I also don’t like being a menace to society. I tried this one at a friends place in Mallorca and now I’m hooked / it reminds me of being on the island.
🎀 October in THE DAILY REST
HEALING THROUGH BEAUTY
〰️ Celebrating the cute, the childlike and the joyful
The October Daily Practice: Balancing Breath Series + Beauty Kriya 🫧
The October Live Classes: New Moon Rest, Romance Yourself: Live Candlelit Yin AND (for the first time) A Soft Business Workshop (!!) All about including the whole of yourself in your business or work.
The Playlist:
As always, thank you for being here. I hope to pop in monthly here on Substack with a letter for all subscribers, sharing my favourite links, music and thoughts on the theme for the month ahead.
And if you’re interested in becoming a member of TDR Studio, but you’re the kind of person who needs to dip a toe in first, here’s a taste test :) We hope you join us as a member one day. I’m obviously biased but: it’s a really special place to be.
With love,
Emmie xo
🎀 IN PERSON EVENTS COMING UP IN NSW
Presented by FEMMZE: The DEEP Unwind, and the art of Rest Workshop.
Flow Athletic, Sydney. October 21st, 4pm.
The Deep Rest Immersion at Soul Tribe Yoga, in the beautiful Batemans Bay.
A Weekend Restorative Training November 4th-5th.
In Person Human Design & Soft Business Sessions
Luna Beauty and Apothecary, Surry Hills
Wednesday 18th and Friday 20th of October (limited spots, email emmie@emmierae.com to book).
🌸
Oh I am so excited about this theme! I was JUST talking about beauty last week with my husband and even my brother after coming across this quote by John O’Donohue: “There is a relentless search for the factual and this quest often lacks warmth or reverence. At a certain stage in our life we may wake up to the urgency of life, how short it is. Then the quest for truth becomes the ultimate project. We can often forage for years in the empty fields of self-analysis and self-improvement and sacrifice much of our real substance for specks of cold, lonesome factual truth. The wisdom of the tradition reminds us that if we choose to journey on the path of truth, it then becomes a sacred duty to walk hand in hand with beauty.”
It sent me down a rabbit hole... remembering hearing Dr Zach Bush saying we are here to witness the beauty, and and then just being fed up in general of all the lists and rigid rules. I realized I craved beauty. The poet Goethe was once asked by a friend what he would suggest as a daily exercise for spiritual betterment. He said:
"I would like to read a noble poem.
I would like to see a beautiful picture.
I would like to hear a bit of inspiring music.
I would like to meet a great soul.
And for my fellow men I would like to say a few sensible words."
I became a dog person even after loving cats first as a child because liking cats seemed too girly and lame. Although I do genuinely love dogs having a cat now I’m remembering how much I loved them 😍