kind of {currency}

Waning Crescent Moon in Gemini

What if, tomorrow, everything changed, and money ceased to have any value— as in, it could no longer buy you anything—couldn’t get you anything— power, access, resources…

…and the new “currency” would be:

the depth of your presence;

the quality of your hugs;

the warmth and love that you meet people with; how you bring them in and hold space and witness them in their fullness;

how well you served your community;

how well you cared for the sacred vessel that is your body…

What if that became what made you wealthy? That’s what allowed you the lifestyle that you desire and ensured that you always had access to food and shelter and whatever else needed to survive and thrive?

What if that new currency created what would be defined as abundance in your life; if it were what the world at large determined to be the most valuable aspects of a person? [if we are going to imagine we are maintaining a hierarchy of human value in this new paradigm, of course.]

What would your net worth be?

And if the value of money were to disappear overnight, stopped being something that we used in exchange for what we want and need, would everything that you’ve been working towards still be worth it?

[The time, effort, energy that you’ve put into building, growing and saving for the vision you hold of the future. All you’ve sacrificed and compromised on— in the present— to get to that place where money is no longer something you have to think about or a barrier to the life you want to live.]

If it stopped being relevant tomorrow, how would you feel about the life you are currently living?

Would you feel like you’ve been wasting your time? Or would you still feel that what and where you’ve been spending your time, effort, and energy— what you’ve been working so hard to build [for the future]— still held value to you?

I’m curious— as a collective society— how many of us are doing something that is deeply meaningful to us. That holds intrinsic value, not just because it gives us the opportunity now [or potentially in the future] to have access to things like resources, shelter, food, or a certain coveted lifestyle, but because it feels in service in a way that is authentic to our soul. In other words it has a juice— an energy to it— that makes it significant outside of the monetary exchange…

And I think on that same thread, it’s important to question individually, what we currently hold in higher regard: assets or humanity?

Pretend for a moment, that you are already living the values of this new, imaginary society where how we show up for self and other— the humanity of it all— matters more than how much money we make and what it can buy us…

Based on the above questions posed, do you have a fulfilling and abundant life [again, without money as the deciding factor]? If not, I invite you to consider the possibility that if money were to simply become worthless [I know it’s not “simply” but we are playing in our imaginations right now— stay with me] would what you’re doing right now and the expense of it — the affect it has on your physical, mental, spiritual health and well being; how it impacts your relationships— the sacrifices, the compromises—would those expenditures still be worth the cost to you?

***

We humans like the illusion of control as a comfort from the reality that things can change in an instant. We are living that reality right now [currently August of 2020]. To a large degree, the outcome of any endeavor is out of our control. If this year has reminded us of anything, it’s how little control we truly have and how many unknowns there are in this life. We control how we show up and how we react. So if everything you have received in exchange for your actions in the past[the outcome], suddenly became worthless, would the journey [the effort]— the exchange of your most finite resources [time and energy]— still have been worth it to you?

If not, I would urge you to consider where you would be left, if everything we have valued as a society were to change overnight. It’s not as far off an idea as we would have considered 6 months ago, now is it? And if that notion scares the shit out of you— it may be worthwhile to take a deeper look at what you are motivated by today, and if that is in alignment with the truth that exists within you vs. something you have bought into [pun intended] that holds little to no true value within.

This moment is literally all we have. More now than ever it feels important to go within to consider what really matters, so that when things do change, you are already showing up from an empowered and authentic space— able to adapt in a world where the only absolute is that things change— instead of feeling dragged around by all that is out of your control.

I know it doesn’t seem likely to occur, and it really doesn’t matter if it does or not. I'm just inviting you to consider how you would respond if everything were flipped upside down [as if they haven’t been already]; if your entire life was built upon the idea of a future self, without any real grounding in who it is you are today, and why it is you do what you do— how would you respond to such a huge paradigm shift? Maybe this is something you’ve already been grappling with over these last few months— maybe this is the first time this has come into your consciousness to consider. Either way, empowerment is an inside job. The outside world will always dictate who and how you should be for their convenience or agendas, but it can’t give you something that you already have within. And only you know the truth of what your purpose is here in this life.

The value of money doesn’t have to become obsolete in order to shift the way we value and show up for humanity—how we show up for ourselves— today.

This is how we reconnect to the power that has always been within. And frankly, become better humans living amongst other humans. So the invitation here: be more intentional about how we are showing up for the present moments that we have, because who knows what tomorrow will bring ;).

***

Day 25/28 : Lots of questions stemmed from a stray thought while eating lunch…I think about the phrase “if money were no object” as an exercise in visioning the future I want to create, and it struck me today that instead of looking at it from the lens that I have so much money it were no barrier, but instead, thought— what if it just weren’t the bartering system any longer that gave me access to things like food, a roof over my head, a car that I can put gas in and drive where I need to go… but if there was something totally different [i’m on a “what an entirely new world could look like” kinda vibe these past few days]. I’m not naive enough to believe that money [at least in my lifetime] would ever be deemed worthless, but I think my hope on some level is that we begin to re-evaluate what really matters, defining value for a more holistic and intrinsic space— each one of us individually being more tuned in with what is most valuable to us, and begin to shift and become a bit more intentional about how live in service to those values. Money is an energy, its a commodity that we have given value, and there is nothing wrong with that, except for when we prioritize it over the inherent value of a human being, or live out of alignment with our unique truth and purpose because it doesn’t make us enough money…Or worse, we determine the value a human based on how much money that have [this includes ourselves]. We have linked abundance to money and in that, have lost sight of the fact that abundance comes in so many shapes and sizes and experiences, if we could give ourselves the space to be here NOW and pay attention to what lights us up—what gives us that warm and fuzzy feeling of being deeply connected to something greater than ourselves; if we could begin to, as a society give that more priority it could transform the way we relate to the world —and most importantly, how we care for and show up for one another.

Where I hope we move toward: More value on humanity, quality of relationships, authentic service coming from a place of love and truth. Less greed, and competition and fear about going without. Creating systems and structures that provide access to the resources that each of us needs to survive, so that we can all begin to show up from an authentic place of service, and give our unique gifts to the world— instead of most of us being in perpetual survival mode.

I wonder how we would relate to one another and how it would shift our mental and physical health. To be seen, and appreciated for our humanness and not the size of our bank account and who “we know”. To not have to hustle or strive or damn near kill ourselves in order to be able to pay rent, or have access to nourishing food and clean water. To not feel shame or selfish for honoring self, and the natural rhythms and cycles of our being— prioritizing the care of this sacred vessel that is our body, which holds that which is infinite and inextricably connects us to all: soul. If we valued the quality of a person based on how they treat other people more so than how much money/influence/access they have, I wonder how different this world would be.

As always, thank you for sticking it out here with me! I would love to hear your thoughts on what came up for you during this reflection. What kind of world would you create if you could?

With gratitude and always LOVE,

it’s just {here}

[almost]Full Moon in Aquarius

How is your heart today sweet, beautiful human? 

My heart hurts. Like the literal space in the area of my physical heart. There is a tension, almost a bruised feeling when I press into the physical surface covering my chest cavity. So it’s visceral, in my physical body, but I know it’s something deeper. It’s as though something is rising to the surface and trying to break its way through my sternum...wanting to break me, open... [oh hey 👋🏼 heart chakra, how you doing in there?]

I know this feeling, this pressure. I’ve been here before. And while I don’t know what is trying to come through at this moment, I know that because I can feel it, it’s asking for my love and tenderness. It’s asking to be witnessed. So I’m going to do just that.

I’m sitting this evening, holding hands with my heart, letting her know i’m here to hold space as she processes whatever energy/emotion/story that’s been trapped under some energetic boulder and is ready to be free. No judgement, no attachment, no agenda. Just being... moving and feeling; allowing. And as the theme of water has popped up into my consciousness every day this week, multiple times... a little breath of surrender into these spaces, even though I don’t “know” what specifically is being moved, trusting I’m being led and that it will guide me exactly to the place I’m meant to go next.

What it’s calling to mind in this moment is a reflection piece I wrote before and after an intense release I had a few months back while visiting a dear sweet sister friend... a day where it literally felt like some gremlin was clawing it’s way out of me, scratching and tearing it’s way to freedom. That shit was intense and viscerally + emotionally painful… this is different, but familiar [I’ll share that journal entry in a separate post since it came up and i’m now feeling called to].

Nothing specifically is “happening” that has catalyzed this feeling, it’s just here. And in my presence and reverence of self, I’m learning day by day, how to listen and hold space for and less time trying to “figure out” what is happening. Because when it’s time for me to know [if it’s time for me to know] then I will know. Until then; I experience. I practice sitting with all the various intensities of emotions and visceral experiences that this body is capable of sharing with me.

A conditioning process of being with the intensity of being.

Trusting in the nudges and body-wisdom that my rational mind will likely never understand. Continuing to learn the nuanced rhythms and messages of my inner knowing. I actually love these present moments with self. When I am able to witness myself in a moment and just be with it. Even when physically i’m feeling a discomfort like today. Especially when I don’t know what the flip is happening inside of me. This feeling of trust that nothing is “wrong” and the freedom that comes from letting go of needing to know, reminds me of how far I have come on this wild journey…what a blessing it is to witness all of me, for me.

***

Do you have physical pains in your body?

Do you ever stop to wonder what messages they are trying to share with you? Our emotions and our physiology are so deeply intertwined and when something it out of balance energetically the body will let you know what it needs and when it needs it. It’s in our capacity and our responsibility [and great opportunity] to learn the language, to learn to read the map, so that we can follow the trail of breadcrumbs being left for us. You have the capacity to heal. That powerful capacity— is within you. And yes, while sometimes we need outside intervention to support our healing, it is your resourcefulness and willingness to follow to where you are being led [to find the sources of support] that will guide you back to the balance, the alignment that is what our beings desire for optimal health; that will bring you back to you—physically, emotionally and spiritually. Whole self integration. It’s all within you.

***

Day 14/28: Sitting with me. Body is absolutely exhausted and has been for the better part of a week, and just doing my best to honor it and move with the energy and not fight against it. I haven’t mentioned this much, because these writings are coming out in flow on a day to day basis and i’m usually just scraping by to get them finished before I fall asleep, but if you have any questions for me, any comments about anything you have read to this point, [or anything in general that is on your heart] I am always open and would love to receive. My email is info@nicolettebernardes.com or you can comment below. Sending so much sweet, juicy love your way, I hope your heart is well, and I’m so happy to have you here— however and wherever you are coming from.❤︎

With gratitude and always LOVE,