Hello dear one,

I am making a big change in the way I'm doing things, starting with some new ways you can receive support. It feels exciting and alive and more aligned with my work. Maybe I'm finally catching up to myself?! That could be super fun.

I've been thinking a lot about what makes a relationship, a group, or a situation feel truly alive, and I keep coming back to one word: reciprocity. I've seen this in groups that thrive, couples where the relationship is flourishing, even relationships between parents and children of any age. When there is reciprocity, there is health.

Picture the infinity symbol, that endless figure-eight loop. Energy flows out through one side, crosses at the center, and returns through the other. In-breath, out-breath. I give, you receive. You give, I receive. There's no fixed giver and no fixed receiver, just a continuous flow, with the meeting point at the heart of it.

That's how I understand a healthy relationship, and a healthy group. Not a place where one person pours out and others only take, which empties the well. And not a place where you have to earn your place or do the right things to belong. A place where energy moves, and everyone is sometimes the one who offers and sometimes the one who receives.

This is why the new community circles I'm opening are by donation, and why I want to say something about what that really means.

Donation is one kind of reciprocity. If you're able to contribute financially, that's one beautiful way to add your energy to the circle and help hold space for others who can't right now. But it is not the only way, and I don't want that to be the price of belonging.

You add to the circle simply by showing up. By listening. By witnessing someone else's story with a soft heart. By offering a word when it's needed, or silence when that's the gift. By bringing your presence, your questions, your care. Some weeks you'll arrive full and have a lot to give. Some weeks you'll arrive empty and need to be held. Both are welcome. Both are part of the flow.

So no one is ever turned away for lack of funds. What I ask is only that you come willing to be part of the circuit, to give what you genuinely can, in whatever form that takes, and to receive what you need without apology.

This is what a healthy family feels like, too. And what we’re co-creating together is a space where all are welcomed. Where there is room for you to share the gifts that you have with others. If you have a willingness to show up and see what's needed in the space and what would feel good to you, I would love to have you in the room with us.

I’ve never done anything quite like this before and I would love for you to be part of it if you feel called!

Here's where these circles are beginning:

An online once a month community circle, open to anyone, anywhere. A warm, welcoming space for parents with children of any age and those who want to support the community work of parenting. We need the elders, we need the tias and tios (aunts and uncles), too. It's a community. We open with a short teaching, then make room for whoever wants to check in, share, or simply listen. Our first gathering is Saturday, September 12, at 1:00pm EDT, about 90 minutes, co-held with my friends Nadja in Slovenia and Carolina in Brasil.

Also coming in September:

An in-person circle in Largo, Florida, for those close enough to gather in a room together. Our first meeting is Saturday, September 26, at 1:00pm. More details coming soon. Hit reply to let me know you're interested and I'll get you the details.

Think of these as a La Leche League meeting for parents with children of any age (and those who are supporters of good-enough parenting, too), a place to be met, to find new friends, to bring a friend who's curious. A beginner's space, gentle and open, where you're welcome exactly as you are.

If one of these calls to you, I would love to see you there!

Be curious. Be kind. Start with yourself.

Warmly,

Rebecca

P.S. Have questions? Not sure if it is for you? Please hit reply and let me know what's on your mind. I'll reply back personally.