Hello my loves,

I googled myself on Tuesday – not something I make a habit of, but I’m using some of my pandemic-induced downtime to review my website, and I wanted to see how it ranked in a search. There, below my website (👊), were lots of lovely articles on what I’d created at Hearth & Soul, and of course, this year’s Free Food Fridays. Free Food Fridays – oh my god. That whole incredible experience, awash with generosity, love, community and connection, had pretty much slipped my mind, gobbled up by the relentless chomping Pac-Man that is 2020. While our last free food service was just a few months ago, with everything that’s happened between now and then, it feels more like a lifetime. And it got me thinking: how often do we pause to reflect on what we’ve achieved, how far we’ve already come?

We spend so much time focusing on where we want to be, and how we’re going to get there, that we forget to give ourselves the mad props for all that we’ve navigated to get this far. Because people, it’s 2020. If you’re reading this, you’re alive, and possibly vaguely functioning, and this year, that’s an achievement of incredible magnitude. Because it’s been real. Real fucking big. For all of us. In so many ways. The universe has grabbed every one of us squarely by the shoulders, stared us straight in the face, and given us a talking-to. Anything you’ve buried deep, anything that still needs work, the emotional themes you’ve elected to use this life to work on: they’re slapping you round the head with them. Repeatedly. With force. And with love too, might I add, because this is of course completely on purpose. If you can’t see it, you can’t move through it, and we are all becoming better versions of ourselves this year, even though it sometimes hasn’t felt like it.

As we approach the end of The Year Like No Other, how about making some time for a good old smug love-in with yourself, as you reflect on everything you’ve achieved, not just this year, but in this life so far. Because I bet it’s a lot. A lot a lot a lot. Just by being on earth right now, you’ve proven yourself a courageous, curious soul, keen to be at the front line of the emotional evolution of our world. And I bet this year you’ve proven yourself to be a lot of other incredible things too, things that maybe before this year, you didn’t really know you were. Whatever shovel-full of caca 2020 has brought you, I’m sure it’s brought deep lessons too. You will be ok. It will be ok. We are all ok. And you can be gang-giggity certain that we’re headed in the right direction.

So this week, I’ve enjoyed looking back, not forward. I have hugely exciting plans for the future, but this week they’ve taken a back seat to my past. I’ve had a long, slow amble down memory lane, and guess what: I’m so proud of myself! I've faced a lot in this life, and to be honest, I'm pretty thrilled about where I’ve got to! I’ve worked hard on self-worth and her sister self-belief, on finding my voice, freely being me, setting boundaries, and following my heart. This year I've been asked to focus specifically on patience, releasing control and perfectionism, finding power in vulnerability, and being abundantly, gloriously flawed. Everyone’s here for their own stuff, and your journey won’t be the same as mine, but I bet that when you stop and reflect on everything you’ve worked through to make it this far, you’ll be pretty chuffed. So make sure you take the time to focus on everything you’ve accomplished, and give yourself a big old pat on the back for being the freaking amazing soul that you are. Well done you precious thing.

And so, to another weekend, the last one in November if you can believe it! I have absolutely zero plans this weekend, there’s zippity in the calendar and we’ve ticked off a lot of the little projects that have been keeping us busy, so I’m going to be spending it doing whatever the f— I like. Perhaps you might feel empowered to do the same :). Until next week my loves 💛.

Love, Rachel xxx