Season: Summer
Element: Fire
Moon: Full
Happy Wednesday!
Tomorrow is the Full Buck Moon in the element of fire. If you need support to balance the intense yang energy of the summer season, the next Rest Curation is on Sunday, July 27, 2025 from 1:30pm - 3:00pm. Note: This will be the last free Rest Curation in the chalet that I will be hosting in 2025. Or get tickets to the Wild Zen Yoga Fest on July 18-20, 2025. Katelyn and I will be leading a meditative walk on Sunday, July 20, at the Wild Zen Yoga Fest, so the next Rest Walk will be on Saturday, August 9, 2025 from 10:00am - 12:00pm. Please sign-up to reserve a spot and remember, as Tricia Hersey writes in her aptly named book, Rest is Resistance.
In this time of summer, it is important to remember that the imbalance of the fire element is anxiety. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), anxiety is associated with the yin organ of the heart which is considered the seat of emotions. If the heart is out of balance, energy can manifest as agitation, restlessness, and anxiety, so consider focusing on emotional regulation during this summer season. In Western society, anxiety is thought to be caused by genetic and biological factors, such as family history and brain chemistry, environmental and life experiences, such as stressful events and trauma, and other factors, such as medical conditions, substance abuse, medications, and sleep deprivation. From past personal experience, I can attest that I would have a lot of anxiety when I was super stressed, drank too much alcohol, and/or didn’t get enough sleep. Looking back on my 20s and 30s, I was probably in a constant anxiety loop of stress, excessive drinking to cope, and sleeping poorly due to staying up late and having stimulants in my system when I went to bed. What a mess!
Within Freudian psychoanalysis, there is a concept that anxiety is anger turned inward. While not universally accepted, it suggests that when anger is not expressed outwardly, it can be internalized and manifest as anxiety. I find this concept so intriguing, since the imbalance of spring’s wood element is anger. Therefore, is it chronologically possible that if you experience anger during the springtime and don’t express it that the energy will be turned inward and become the imbalance of anxiety during the summer’s fire element? Quite possible! I am always in awe at the flow of the five elements and how they affect each other within the creative and destructive cycles. In essence, the imbalance of the wood element (anger) provides the fuel for the imbalance of the fire element (anxiety).
So, what do we do? Of course, to start we can process or express our anger which I wrote about in my Full Pink Moon post. But once anxiety surfaces, there are many ways to cope with it, which we can read about in Healthline’s Effective Coping Techniques for Anxiety. Most of the recommendations include common practices that are positive for overall health such as getting good sleep, breathwork, meditation, journaling, exercising, and eating well. I have been trying for years to integrate these practices into my life and many have worked well for keeping my anxiety at bay. However, there are times when anxiety comes to visit like an unwelcome house guest that just won’t leave. During these times, I find it helpful to view anxiety in relationship to The Three Unavoidables from Phil Stutz’s book True and False Magic which he co-wrote with my favorite podcaster Elise Loehnen:
Pain – Per Stutz, “The universe is not designed for your comfort. It is designed to support you by pushing you forward. This support from the universe is not the same thing as eliminating all pain. Pain is any event in which you meet the universe, and it hurts.” Anxiety is painful, but if we acknowledge what it is trying to tell us then we can understand how we are in disharmony with the world, discover how to course correct, and in doing so we have the ability to expand.
Uncertainty – Per Stutz, “The universe is chaotic in and of itself. There’s no way any human being could be privy to what will happen next. It’s not a bad thing that we’re not privy to the rules of the universe, because knowing what will happen will not solve our anxiety—it would actually be crippling.” As humans, we crave certainty but the universe is uncertain, so to be in flow we need to accept this reality. Reaching for certainty in an uncertain world usually leads to greater anxiety within ourselves and division and intolerance with others. I have been sharing the following quote from the movie Conclave constantly with friends because it is so prescient for this time and relates so poignantly to uncertainty:
“My brothers and sisters, in the course of a long life in the service of our Mother the Church, let me tell you that the one sin I have come to fear more than any other is certainty. Certainty is the great enemy of unity. Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance. Even Christ was not certain at the end. 'Eli Eli, lama sabachtani?' He cried out in His agony at the ninth hour on the cross. 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' Our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand in hand with doubt. If there was only certainty, and if there was no doubt, there would be no mystery, and therefore no need for faith.”
The Need for Constant Work – Per Stutz, “We live in a universe that is always moving. Everything is constantly changing and shifting — to stay in the flow of the universe, you must be in constant motion, otherwise you lose touch. In fact, higher forces cannot find you if you are not in motion. This need for ceaseless immersion, attention, and commitment takes work — endless work.” Anxiety usually does not go away magically. It often takes work on ourselves to make it dissipate. For me, sleep, exercise, and talking it out with friends and family usually does it. If anxiety persists however, I am not opposed to help from nature in the form of 1906 Chill Drops or NuLeaf CBD:CBN Gummies. I’ve found that CBD works wonders at quelling my anxiety and quieting my to-do list ticker. You may need to test out many different practices or products to see what helps with your anxiety, so if you find it difficult you can always connect a professional (psychologist, psychiatrist, counselor, breathwork teacher, etc.). Please feel empowered to ask for help and have faith that working to balance your anxious energy will lead to joy.
These times are trying, so give yourself permission to REST. Information on upcoming Rest Curations, Rest Walks, and Sound Curations are at the bottom of the post. And please pass this Substack onto a friend or family member to broaden this amazing CRC community and to give the gift of rest to those who need it. If you don’t live in West Michigan and want to hold a Rest Curation in your local community, please email me at abby@cascadefengshui.com for the script and music information. Or email me if you would like to organize a private Rest Curation for friends, family, or colleagues.
Note: Rest products are still in the works, but I am leaving the paid subscriber Rest Readings, Rest Recipes, Rest Rituals, and Rest Recordings on the newsletter for a month or so. If you want to contribute, consider becoming a paid subscriber through Substack:
REST READING
Check out all of the rest reading recommendations in Resources on my Substack page.
REST RECIPE
The other week, my husband and I went to the Fulton Street Market and Martha’s Vineyard Grocery for a fun Wednesday out. To my delight, I found the most beautiful sugar snap peas and garlic scapes at the market and the most joyful pasta at the grocery. Once I got home, I was inspired to combine them into a cold pasta salad perfect for these hot summer days. I used Molly Yeh’s Macaroni Salad as the base of the recipe but tweaked the pasta and veggies. So here is the Cold Pasta Salad recipe:
Kosher salt
1 pound pasta (pick one that brings you joy*)
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 garlic scapes
1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil
2 1/4 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup whole milk, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 cups sugar snap peas
Freshly ground black pepper
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions. Drain and place into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the apple cider vinegar and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Wash and cut the scapes into 1/2” pieces before sautéing in a saucepan with the oil until tender. Let cool. Meanwhile, wash, trim, and cut the snap peas into 1/2” pieces. Mix the mayonnaise, milk and granulated sugar in a medium bowl. Fold into the cooked pasta along with the snap peas and garlic scapes with 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours and up to overnight. Before transferring to a serving bowl, give it a good stir and add more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. Serve with a protein for a delicious meal.
*Bringing joy to cooking is important because it enhances overall well-being by reducing stress, quelling anxiety, boosting self-esteem, and fostering creativity.
REST RITUAL
As I mentioned above, meditation is a good coping strategy for anxiety. I am not a great meditator, so when I get anxious and need to meditate I turn to Headspace. I love the app for guided meditations, but I also love their videos on meditation foundations and our connection to nature. If you do not have the app, you can always trial it for free or check out the Headspace YouTube Channel for some of their best videos. Here is a fireside meditation video that fits well with the element of fire:
Thank you so much for reading! I hope this has been enjoyable. May you have a restful end to your week and weekend.
Below are the upcoming 2025 Cascade Rest Curations (links to Eventbrite are underlined):
REST CURATIONS
Guided body scan, energy clearing, vagus nerve reset, yoga nidra exercise, rest / sleep, wake up, and meditation over an hour and a half. All Rest Curations will take place on the Sunday near the new moon at the Liebestraum Chalet in Alto, Michigan:
Rest Curation - Sunday, July 27, 2025 from 1:30pm - 3:00pm
REST WALKS
Monthly dynamic walks to bring both energy and relaxation. These guided walks will start with a circle to stretch and to set an intention to ponder based on the element of the season. The first 30 minutes of the walk will be in noble silence and the last 30 minutes will be open to conversation and observation. The walk will finish with a circle to reflect, share, integrate, and finally stretch. If you have been hesitant to join a Rest Curation, please consider signing up for a Rest Walk since this a more active entry into yin energy. All Rest Walks will take place on the Saturday near the full moon at a park near Grand Rapids, Michigan:
Rest Walk - Saturday, August 9, 2025 from 10:00am - 12:00pm
SOUND CURATIONS
Join us to celebrate the element of each season with sound immersions by Kara Markovich at the Liebestraum Chalet in Alto, Michigan:
TBD
And if you are interested in my feng shui and interior design services, please see my website at www.cascadefengshui.com and contact me at abby@cascadefengshui.com.