Five Vulnerable Things: Vol. 014
Hello soul friend,
How has January been treating you?
It’s been a month of burrowing, spinning, and finding my footing again.
Slower mornings. Long walks. Letting things surface. Letting other things quietly fall away. January always feels like this for me. Less blooming, more listening. Less forcing, more noticing what still has life and what doesn’t.
And lately, one message has been repeating itself everywhere I look.
Whatever is not showing signs of life, you need to let it go.
I was casually listening to The Hood Healer do tarot card pulls, and of course I waited patiently for her to call Sagittarius. But before she got around to my sign, I heard something that landed like an arrow in my heart: “Whatever is not showing signs of life, you need to let it go.”
How often do we hold onto things that are already expired and lifeless, yet our stubborn asses try to will them back to life?
This feels especially potent for entrepreneurs and creative people. We try things out, and sometimes right out the gate, after an announcement or a few reps, you already know it’s not it. Instead of listening to the intuition within, we convince ourselves consistency is the problem. That we just need to do more. Push harder. Resuscitate the idea.
But not everything is meant to be revived.
Some things are meant to be buried.
This goes for relationships and friendships too. Some are simply seasonal. Others no longer have that flicker and need to be released.
Maybe you close your eyes for a few minutes and scan the areas of your life. What is no longer showing signs of life? Can you release it back to the earth and allow yourself to sit in the spaciousness that emerges?
Move before certainty arrives.
I watched The House of Dynamite this past week, directed by Kathryn Bigelow. It follows three perspectives during a nuclear attack on US soil and it was incredibly suspenseful. The ending left much to be desired because we don’t get closure, which at first felt like a tease. But the film’s message is simple. Sometimes you have to make a decision with little to no information or guarantees.
I see so many people in my life and orbit paralyzed trying to pick their purpose, like trying to choose the perfectly ripe avocado you need for the guacamole tonight. What a stressful mission.
This film takes decision-making to the highest stakes, with millions of lives on the line. But choosing your purpose is not stopping a nuclear bomb. It’s much quieter than that.
It’s living it right now.
Am I in dharma?
Am I in right relationship with my values?
Am I following my curiosity?
What step can I take today, even without guarantees, to keep expressing my heart’s wish?
Dharma isn’t something you figure out once. It’s something you practice, moment by moment.
Leaving always costs something, and still makes space for more.
It was a big movie week for me because film is where I find refuge. As an artist, it feels like the most complex and electrifying medium. I truly believe I could learn everything I need to know in this lifetime, film by film.
I finally got around to watching Past Lives by Celine Song. I know, I know. I can’t believe it took me so long either. But there was always a quiet whisper that said not now, like I wasn’t ready yet, like it would meet me exactly when I needed it.
So I watched it and bawled my eyes out frame by frame while my husband worked on his Suzuki motorcycle in the garage with his Air Force buddy.
There are countless profound moments in this film, but one line from Nora’s mother talking about immigrating to Canada left me undone. She said, “It’s true that if you leave you lose things, but you also gain things, too.”
Something about that cut straight through me.
I thought about my father leaving our family when I was fifteen. What he must have lost. What he must have gained.
I thought about old relationships where I was afraid to let go. I was a classic clinger, convinced I could pull off some grand Bollywood gesture and win someone back.
But every time I left, I lost something.
And every time, I gained something too.
The story keeps going. Strangers become fixtures. Fixtures leave again. We all leave at some point.
Oddly, that truth makes me softer now. More trusting.
If something goes, something else will come.
The part you cannot see yet might be the most important part.
Trust the gift you already carry.
After a few tough weeks of pushing too hard and chasing achievement like a sugar craving, I had a beautiful experience guest coaching for my friend Zoey Greco.
I spent hours prepping. But when the event started, everything in my head got quiet.
I felt like I was flying.
The words came easily. The stories flowed. The space felt held and alive. There was this ease of being fully in the pocket and letting the moment shape itself.
It felt like magic.
It also reminded me of something simple.
I know what I’m doing.
I’m great at what I do.
And you probably are too.
Please lean in. Don’t tap out.
Every minute counts.
I’ve been keeping track of my daily meditations this year and I’ll share my cumulative minutes in each letter.
The result isn’t in any single sit. It’s in the practice of coming back, over and over.
Every minute counts.
One day this month I only sat for one minute. My longest sit was 120. Whether you feel it or not, it’s compounding. It’s strengthening your mind and softening your heart.
12-Week Coaching Scholarship
I’m offering one fully gifted 12 week 1:1 coaching container starting in March.
This is for someone who is serious about their growth and ready to be supported, but doesn’t currently have the financial resources for private coaching.
If that’s you, or someone you love, please apply.
I don’t want money to be the reason someone can’t access deep, consistent support.
Applications close February 1st. I’ll personally respond to everyone who applies.
Til next week.
Meditation minutes in 2026: 474 minutes & counting…
Every minute counts,
Asa
Always a nugget of wisdom my soul is longing to hear. Thanks for this post Asa 💜