Welcome July
How I'm Saying Goodbye to June
Last night I stood out on the front porch and watched the full strawberry moon rise into the sky. In truth, the moon was full on Monday, but I missed its ascension due to busy-ness and distraction and letting my mind rest on less regal things. Last night it still carried its roundness tho, and I made a point to stand at attention for a time. As it rose in the sky it changed in complexion, from deep golden to luminous white light and I felt a shift in my spirit with each subtle change in hue. The first peoples named it the strawberry moon because it marked the ripening of the strawberries. So many of us have lost a connection with the earth that enables such intimate namings, but standing under that moon I felt it pulling me back into that kind of deep awareness, a kinship with the stars and the planets and every given thing underneath that sky. Standing still under the winking night I felt my own smallness but also the truth of a fierce belonging to all of this—the invisible tatting connecting me to all of creation. Paying attention to the rhythms of nature has a way of sanctifying the passage of time.
To listen to this post:
It’s the first day of July and I’ve been spending some time with June this morning. We are gearing up for a heatwave and it’s a good time to sit in my squishy chair with Bonnie (in the A/C), reflecting on some of my favorite moments from the month. These past 30 days went by in a rush and summer is dripping away like a fast-melting red-white-and-blue pop eaten on the front porch steps after taking the dog for a walk on a 90 degree (+) day. June was the month we marked three years without my dad. We said goodbye to a dear one who gave up on life too soon and to some friends who moved away. I celebrated signing with a new literary agent and marked the two-year anniversary of the release of my last book. There was poetry and there were birds and a long overdue visit with a beloved friend I haven’t seen in nearly ten years. When I sat down with June, I didn’t expect much. It felt like it was over before it began. But when I look back through my journal, when I hold each moment and each day up to the light—let myself remember and reflect and feel—the moments are given weight and shape and contours all their own. I can savor the memories in ways I may have missed while in the middle of the experience.
This has been my practice at the beginning of each new month for several years now. I have found that looking back not only helps me look forward with new eyes, but it affirms the value of the small ways I invest in my life, it brings joy in the margins, it allows me to grieve the losses more fully. I believe it was Socrates who said, “An unexamined life is not worth living.” I, perhaps, would not go this far but maybe a better way to say this sentiment is, “A life well examined is one of deeper meaning.”
I started my own version of bullet journaling in 2018, and this has made this monthly (and yearly) practice much more efficient. This video explains that process completely, but I do not fully follow this formula. My own journal is a much more simplified version. I begin with a layout of the full month and then weekly spreads with individual days following. I have sections in the back for prose journaling, collecting quotes or inspirational thoughts, reflections on movies/books/television series, nature observations, and the books I’ve read and/or want to read in the future. I’ve tried different journals in the past, my favorite being the leuchtturm 1917, which I used for several years but found that creating all the layouts from scratch was a bit too time intensive for my life right now. My friend Tresta suggested the Wonderland journal, which has monthly and weekly spreads pre-done, making it easy for me to add my own art and personal touches. I just pre-ordered my third such journal for 2027 and I have been happy with this system so far. I do miss creating my own themes from scratch and maybe when I retire will go back to the leuchtturm. We shall see. If you are interested in seeing exactly how I design my journals, I have story highlights on my Instagram profile for my journals from 2020-2023.
Another tool I use in my monthly reflection is my photostream on my phone, as well as my Instagram feed. In the past couple years I have been less plugged in to social media, but I still try to capture moments on my phone to document the Joy. There are sorrows too, and I’ve found it important to remember those as well. Many moments hold a bit of both—bittersweet—and these are the shots that expand my heart the most.
Journaling is a tool I recommend for all of my patients. Often, I don’t know how I feel about something until I write it down. I won’t belabor the point, as the benefits are well-documented, but I wanted to share my own process today in case it might be helpful to you, dear reader.
Sharing a few photos from June with my paid subscribers just for fun! Thanks to all my readers, you make this journey so lovely. Wishing you a good and beautiful July.
a poem for you:
goodbye, June,
with your early
morning light, nights
that bead
on the skin, under
a waxing crescent
moon. goodbye,
June, with your reds
and blues, greens
shifting
with the breeze,
yellows puddling
on the wooden floor;
dappled, brushed,
poured out
to color the days.
goodbye, June, dressed
in birdsong and black-
eyed-Susans, scent
of honeysuckle
in your hair, feet
dipped in the cool wet,
fireflies and cricket
castanet your
accompaniment. until we
meet again,
love. goodbye.
