Love From Maria

Being an empath is an incredible thing, understanding how someone feels without even having to talk to them is a gift I'll never take for granted. It means big feelings, exhaustion from crowds, and recharging in nature - who'd have guessed, haha! It's also led me down an introspective thought path, in particular, during or after opinions that challenge my own are shared. It's not easy for anyone to engage, listen, or even entertain ideas that don't support their own worldviews. It's not natural to surround yourself with people that don't share your worldviews and it's not particularly enjoyable. Challenging someone's worldview can cause upset, anger, even - and in particular for an empath - feeling physically unwell. But here's the thing, I think being empathetic and leaning into empathy means more than what might be assumed as "just feeling things" or "understanding the underdog". It means challenging yourself to see it fro

We met at the park one day when my son had to pee. He was potty-training and while we were playing at the park he started the infamous potty dance. "You can go over there, in the long grass. That's where my sons always go."  I know, that seems like an odd line to bond over, but in that moment I knew I had a new friend. I often write about going to the park, or for walks, and I come at it from all angles. Here is one of my favourite ones - the one that brings you new friends. You see, when we take our kids outside to play, when we venture away from our yards, onto the streets, pathways, and parks in our neighbourhoods, a fantastic thing happens - we meet our neighbours. This is how I met my neighbour - my friend. Yes, we bonded over peeing at the park. Any parent who has gone through potty-training has got to be able to relate to this. We met and we talked. We talked about kids at first - you know, the ones peeing in the long grass - the ones we have in common. K