Latest / Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul / Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | The Dark Moon vs the New Moon: What No One Talks About & Why It Matters

Transcript

Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | The Dark Moon vs the New Moon: What No One Talks About & Why It Matters · Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul

• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: Hello and welcome to today's episode of the Healing Her Story podcast.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_01: Today we are gathering for our weekly cycle sink, and I've got a dark moon episode for you today.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: As the day that this episode is airing, we are in the dark moon time.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_01: And it's been a while since we've really gone deep with this particular phase.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm looking forward to diving in with you today.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_01: And of course, in perfect divine timing, I feel like I've been really basking in this energy over the last day or two.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_01: So I trust that you will get what you need from today's conversation.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_01: If you are just making your way to this podcast, welcome.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: It's an honor to be here with you and to be able to share this feminine wisdom with you.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: Which, by the way, whether you're new or returning, I believe already lives inside of you.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_01: All I am doing really is helping you to remember.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: Anything that I am sharing is wisdom that I have either cultivated through my own lived experience or wisdom that has been passed down to me from some of my teachers.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's important, especially in the day and age that we're living in now, that we keep this information alive as so much of it has been lost over the centuries of the wisdom of the feminine being washed away, being buried beneath the ground.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_01: We are in a time now where she is beginning to rise.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: And I see that through more and more women who are becoming more curious about this work, who are being more drawn to this work.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: I think deep down we're all quite sick of the bullshit of our patriarchal and capital systems.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_01: And as insignificant as it may seem, menstrual cycle awareness is a wonderful way to combat these systems in a way that allows us to have some sense of understanding and control and ownership, really.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_01: Not quite control, but ownership over our own bodies and over our own lived experience.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_01: So that is a work that we are doing here.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's so much more than just cycle sinking, it's really about embodying a new way of being, a way that is more true, a way that honors the female body that honors the natural world, the earth, and not just the female bodies, but all bodies.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_01: So thanks so much for being here and tuning in today.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_01: We're gonna begin, like we always do, on our Monday episodes, with a minute of silence.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_01: And in this minute, you are invited to come into a place of more presence with yourself.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_01: And in spirit of today's theme, I'm gonna really invite you to come into a place of more presence with yourself.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: So maybe, just maybe, you're able to stop what you're doing, and you can maybe close down your eyes, and you can maybe allow yourself to relax into the moment that you are in, even if it's just for a little bit.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna do the same with you today.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna put my microphone on mute and I'm gonna keep my eye on my watch here, and our one minute will begin now.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: Taking a moment here to note anything that may have stood out to you.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: For me, I really enjoyed the quiet.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_01: I had a nice yawn and closed my eyes and really just took a moment to be.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_01: And that yawn that I had afterwards as information for me, letting me know that there was some settling that happened in my system, which is warmly welcomed as I'm reaching the end of my inner winter here and starting to feel that very slight rise in inspiration.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: I've been very much kind of in my red tint today, and also starting to feel the first little bits of wanting to create and share.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_01: I feel I'm really feeling that now with Leo season and also with some other things happening astrologically in my chart.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: So it's been interesting to have this dance of showing up, being seen, sharing my gifts while still honoring this part of me that really does enjoy retreating and being alone and being in my own energy.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: So that's been an interesting experience to play with this cycle.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's one that I am familiar with, and so I feel versed here, and it's just an interesting experience.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's okay.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_01: It really speaks to the polarity and the complexity of the human experience, and I think it also brings some reality to this work as well, because not always are we able to just fully retreat into our red, our red tent and to be fully left alone, completely stepping away from the obligations and responsibilities of life just because of the modern world that we live in.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_01: So I hope that if you are newer to this work, or even if you've been doing this work for a while, that you can see that there's a little bit of nuance here and that there's really no right or wrong way to do this work.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's really about honoring what works for you.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_01: And with that, I was able to have a quiet walk in nature today.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_01: I had a nice spacious day yesterday, and have a little bit more space today as well before it's back into some training for my part-time work and then getting ready for a travel.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_01: A travel, an adventure, getting ready to be traveling here at the end of the week.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: So really looking forward to that.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_01: And as promised, we'll share more of my adventures and insights and experiences with you when I'm on the other side.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_01: I am cycle day five today, and as I'm wrapping up my cycle, this trip feels like the perfect time in my cycle for new adventures, for experimenting, for exploring.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: So looking forward to that.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_01: This week, in regards to the lunar cycle, we are attuning to the energy of the dark moon.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: And this is a special moment in the cycle that I don't feel like it's talked about or honored nearly enough.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_01: The dark moon, by the way, is not to be confused with the new moon.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_01: Technically speaking, the new moon is when that first tiny sliver of light appears in the sky.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: The dark moon is the one or two days leading up to that, the nights where you look out into the sky and see no light at all.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: The stars may actually seem brighter during this time because the moon isn't illuminating the sky.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: It is a liminal space, a kind of void, the space in between the cycle that just ended and the cycle that is about to begin.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_01: When I think about how this shows up in the breath, it's the moment of pause right after the exhale and right before the inhale.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_01: That suspended moment where life almost stands still.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_01: There's no more reflecting on what has passed, and there isn't any looking forward to what is yet to come.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: There is simply being present with what is.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's really important to honor these moments, and I also want to be honest about how hard that can be.
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_01: If you're anything like me, you might be someone who is quick to move on to the next thing.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_01: I know that I tend to orient towards future forward thinking.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_01: And some of you may orient more towards the past, looking back on things that have transpired and maybe ruminating on them.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: The dark moon is an invitation to let go of both of those and to simply be present.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_01: And to me, presence is such a gift when you really think about it.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: The only moment we truly have is the one we are in right now.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_01: Our next moments are not guaranteed, and what has happened in the past is exactly that.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_01: It's what has happened.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_01: It only comes back when we go back to it.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: The past isn't necessarily living in the present.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_01: Now, our previous experiences may very well be living in the body or in the nervous system, and physically, we are here in this moment.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_01: Presence, I believe, is a long-lost skill in our culture.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_01: I notice this all the time.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_01: Waiting in line for a matcha or at the grocery store or at the airport.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_01: I really love to observe this at the airport.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_01: I'll look around, and so rarely do I see someone who is just being present, someone who isn't scrolling or consuming or being engaged with some kind of distraction.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: And I say this with so much grace and compassion because what that is is a beautiful and very wise coping strategy of our systems.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_01: Being present can genuinely be uncomfortable.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_01: When we are distracting ourselves, it's often because something in the present moment doesn't feel safe to be with.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's a physical pain or discomfort or emotions that have been tucked beneath the surface, reaching up to be felt.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: Perhaps it's a built-up tension or a nervousness or just an overall sense of unease.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: And research supports this.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_01: Wow.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_01: And that mind wandering was consistently linked to lower levels of happiness, regardless of what people were doing.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't that people were doing that predicted how they felt, but whether their mind was present or elsewhere.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_01: And on a nervous system level, research in mindfulness shows that presence is when we allow ourselves to simply be without an agenda or distraction.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_01: This is when the parasympathetic nervous system has the opportunity to come on.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_01: This is where cortisol can lower.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: This is where our heart rate can slow.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: And this is where we begin to have the conditions required for genuine rest and restoration.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: I do want to normalize how difficult it can be to be present, though, especially given the systems we live in.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_01: And at the same time, I also want to gently remind you that the present moment is truly all we have.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: So your invitation this week is simple, not necessarily easy, but simple.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_01: Can you allow yourself a day or two before the new moon to just be?
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_01: And maybe begin to explore what that even means for you.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_01: What does it actually feel like to just be?
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: What is the experience of being like?
• 18:04
  SPEAKER_01: For me, I find it most natural when I'm out in nature.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_01: Before recording this episode today, I took one of my ritual walks down by the river.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it was almost as if my life suspended for that hour I was there.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: I had my phone with me, but I wasn't on it.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_01: I wasn't listening to music or a podcast.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: I was just walking, looking at the trees, listening to the birds, noticing the physical sensations, the bead of sweat rolling down my back, the feeling of my feet on the earth, the different textures and colors, and the real full sensory experience of being outside.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I noticed how at peace I was.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_01: I wasn't thinking about anything coming.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_01: I wasn't reflecting on anything that had passed.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_01: There was just this softening and settling in my system that I think sometimes we don't always give ourselves the permission to feel.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_01: Our nervous systems, our bodies, they really do benefit from space.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_01: Our biology has not advanced to the level in which technology in our world has.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so these resilient, yes, and also precious bodies, they really do benefit from moments to just be.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I think we lose sight of that in our busy world.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_01: That's actually one of the reasons I begin each of these episodes with a minute to pause and be still.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_01: So there very likely may be a lot of energy moving, a lot of creativity, connections, conversations, experiences.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: Summer tends to be a much busier time.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_01: It's the full moon, it's the peak of the cycle.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_01: And that makes it all the more it that makes it all the more reason, makes it more important, excuse my words there, to create a moment of stillness in the middle of it.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: Even just today or the day after, or maybe it's just an hour or 30 minutes, or hell, maybe even just another one of those pauses, but a small pause.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_01: And I'd be really curious to know how that lands for you.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_01: How does creating that space support you in feeling more prepared and more grounded for the cycle ahead?
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_01: To support you this week, I'm leaving a trauma-informed somatic meditation on Insight Timer for you in the show notes.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_01: Something gentle to guide you back into that space of presence if you'd like a little support getting there.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_01: I'm also continuing to leave the next week a little open as far as episodes go, so make sure you're subscribed and you'll be notified if something new drops.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_01: If not, I look forward to connecting with you the following week for our next cycle check in, where we will officially be in the waxing moon and preparing for Virgo season, which will be just a few days after that episode drops.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: I look forward to connecting with you then.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_01: Take care.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_01: Bye for now.