All Flourishing Is Mutual:
How Fire Feeds Earth
As we move past the peak of summer and begin our transition to late summer (distinctly different energy, according to Chinese medicine), I’ve felt an internal shift too.
Lately, I’ve found myself in a sweet little pocket of mindset and energy. I feel connected to abundance, grounded in trust, and excited about what I’m building. When I think about how to grow The Listening Movement, my guiding question has been:
“What’s the scenario in which everyone wins?”
I’ve been letting my thoughts drop down into my heart, where I wait for a feeling of excitement—and an expanding energy seems to occur. I feel generous, and giving, and joyful. When the plan aligns with that feeling, I believe I am on the right track.
What’s interesting is: just over a month ago, our house flooded. That was a big unexpected challenge. We responded to the challenge, then went on our summer trip. Just as we returned home from our travels, having repaired, having made the investments to fix things, we discovered a new leak—unrelated to the first issue. The leak ruined our kitchen cabinets, displaced us once again, and our kitchen is unavailable to us. This, after nearly two months of moving about, when we were really craving to nest in our home. When I was looking forward to cooking for my family again.
In theory, that is not an ideal scenario. It was another unforeseen expense. Another break from our routines, forcing us to adapt yet again. And yet again, I have been pleasantly surprised to not feel off-kilter by it. I’ve discovered that my partner and I—my family unit, really—can work as a team. From the place of trust and connection and teamwork, we are not alone in our problem solving.
So I asked myself, “What is the lesson I am supposed to learn here? What is the universe trying to tell me?” I sat with it until I could feel the answer within me: “You’ve put down roots in Austin. This is your home. Invest in it. Don’t wait, don’t make excuses (you can’t wait anymore anyway)…jump in and take care of it.”
I had always envisioned updating the kitchen—but told myself to wait. Wait until I made more money. Until I had more time. Until things settled.
The leak shifted everything. Now, I’m calling it a “renovation.” Not a disruption, but a gift. A push toward something I’d been postponing. And my prevailing feeling has been… gratitude.
In her beautiful little book, The Serviceberry, Robin Wall Kimmerer writes,
“Gratitude and reciprocity are the currency of a gift economy, and they have the remarkable property of multiplying with every exchange, their energy concentrating as they pass from hand to hand, a truly renewable resource…When I speak about reciprocity as a relationship, let me be clear. I don’t mean a bilateral exchange in which an obligation is incurred, and can then be discharged with a reciprocal “payment.” I mean keeping the gift in motion in a way that is open and diffuse, so that the gift does not accumulate and stagnate, but keeps moving, like the gift of berries through an ecosystem.”
This captures the essence of the Earth element beautifully—the season we are beginning to transition toward.
Another example: after returning from Santa Barbara, I missed the vibrant studio and beautiful community there. I kept telling myself I’d build that in Austin “someday.” But again—our kitchen event nudged me forward. Just three days later, I found myself taking classes at a local studio. I felt it in my body: this is the place. I’m not fully in yet, but I’ve taken the first steps. And it feels good—centered, abundant, real.
This week, I’ve been feeling how my fire (my heart) is feeding and guiding my earth element. Letting the sparks from my heart (Fire) guide me to feeling my center (Earth), where I feel abundant, generous, and connected.
And that’s feeding how I think about community.
The Listening Movement isn’t about hierarchy. It’s about mutual nourishment—students, teachers, practitioners all contributing to a living, breathing ecosystem. I’m asking:
How can I be of service to my students?
How can I support the communities they serve?
And how do I keep filling my own cup along the way?
Join the next live class:
Thursday, August 7, 11–12:30 p.m. CT
We’ll move through this energetic transition in our own bodies—feeling how your Fire feeds your Earth.
Join through the TLM Membership if you're not already in.
