Happy New Year everyone!
I hope you have settled well into 2026. Iām currently writing from a cafĆ© in Germany.
The frozen, snow-filled days seem to be over by now, though the sun hours are still limited to a precious few in the mornings - if weāre lucky.
I started the year well rested and blissed out from my Madeira trip in December.
And then life obligations took over: job hunting, preparing for a certificate while being radically honest with myself about what I want and donāt want, and acting in integrity.
There have been many fights with mind spirals, and subsequently, surrendering to chaos and falling apart.
I had to keep reminding myself that life is never about erasing the difficult parts - but to find lightness and grace in the midst of it.
Bouncing back from suffering happens faster over time and even when it doesnāt; we can accept the now as it is.
Showing up every day (however that looks) is all that matters.
Iāve been journeying with the Gene Keys for many years and they have been a close companion in navigating change.
In this article, Richard Rudd explains why the new year doesnāt truly begin until late January with Gene Key 41. This deeply resonated with me, so Iāve been keeping my expectations low and letting myself hibernate a little longer.
2026 is going to be an interesting year. The year of closing doors before a new era begins in 2027.
For my part, I feel quite excited to witness this big transition. Iāve been in an in-between space myself for over a year now, and instead of seeking specific answers, Iām slowly beginning to ask better questions and expand my view.
I hope youāre taking good care of yourself and making use of the tools that anchor you.
For this monthly edition I was drawn to bold red and a more colorful vibe, as a contrast to the grey weather.
Enjoy reading!
Nina š¤
NOURISHING RITUALS
1. Ceremonial Cacao
This warm heart-opener has become my go-to morning ritual during the dark winter months. I canāt emphasize enough how much it has helped me in stabilize & uplift my mood.
2. Going outside. Every day.
Sounds like a no-brainer, but honestly: some days I struggle to leave the cozy warm cocoon and would rather be a screen zombie. Still, even ten minutes of cold air makes me feel alive and like a human again.
3. Group Workouts
I went to some dance classes and a calisthenics group workout. Even though Iām very comfortable working out on my own, the energy of people is simply amazing and gives me different kind of high.
watched
I ājoinedā the Full Moon Ceremony by CoSM for the first time, as a replay on YouTube. Alex and Allyson Grey have held 288 consecutive full moon ceremonies since 2003, and I canāt wait to attend one in person someday.
They spoke about the full moon as a mirror, a time for inner reflection. They shared about the evolution and vision of Entheon, their Sanctuary for Visionary Art. The theme of the month was Sacred Relationship, and the presentation was accompanied by some breathtaking artwork.
The evening ended with an extraordinary piano piece, followed by blessings and prayers.
It felt special to witness how Alex and Allyson have followed their vision for 50 years and gathered a global community around them.
I visited an immersive exhibition of their work in London in 2024, which I described briefly here.
I long to be part of a spiritual and creative community again. And besides, building a temple has been a vision of mine for years. This blog actually started with the idea of a digital temple.
Itās humbling, yet inspiring, to see that big visions like these do manifest - and the dedication it takes.
The inevitable consequence of love is the building of a temple
Energy Cleanse
Property Clearing
Alia, a trusted psychic Iāve had several readings with in the past years, introduced her new offering and I needed to sign up. Property Clearing is about clearing the past energetic imprints from our homes and the land they sit upon.
Iām currently staying at my parentsā house, and for many years Iāve felt this dark, heavy energy here - something that exceeds the usual family dynamics. Unlike her other offerings this one wasnāt live, and the results came in a written form. I wonāt get into details, but what she found and cleared was quite resonant and interesting.
She also cleared two negative thought forms.
As she describes:
āA negative thought form is created typically by someone in the home, who feeds into a thought so
much that it begins to take on a life of its own and create this negative cycle. Itās like a smell being in
the air but instead of a scent itās a feeling. The more we feed into the energy the stronger it gets, and
the more it weighs on us, perpetuating the cycle more and more.ā
I was beyond happy to read that. Iāve sensed thought forms all my life, but this was the first time Iād seen such a clear description of them, and felt validated in my experience.
Chiropractic
Itās been a few years since I last went to an osteopath, and this time I chose a chiropractor because I was curious about the gentler approach. My practitioner created a warm, welcoming atmosphere and listened to me attentively.
Turns out having two different leg lengths isnāt normal at all - my left leg was 2cm longer than my right! Iād noticed it through leg press exercises at the gym and suspected it was also causing my shoulder and back pain (besides the two herniated discs from 2018).
I was realigned gently, and it took two to three days to get used to walking normally again. It felt skewed - because I was so used to skewity.
Two weeks later, I think my shoulders and neck are less tense than before. Curious to observe more changes, and Iāll probably go back for another session soon.
Places/Events I went
1. Homebrew Website Club
So good to talk to people in real life who care about the indie web and nerd out a little bit!
2. Gene Keys Weekly Pulse Call
Every 5.5 days the sun travels to another hexagram in the sequence, so each every week there is another Gene Key to contemplate in the call on Clubhouse. Was beautiful to sink into the contemplative field of the group.
3. Sauna Day
Went to the biggest complex nearby and spent some relaxing quality time with my mum, immersed in 1001 Nights atmosphere.
Passed with šÆ
Professional Scrum Product Owner
I partipated in a two-week training for the official Scrum Product Owner certificate. I have worked as a project / product manager before, and was hoping that a certificate would solidify my experience. Our lecturer included a lot of fun group exercises helping us deepen our knowledge in defining vision/mission, product backlog refinement, stakeholder management, and evidence-based management. In the end, the test was the most important element, and I overprepared on purpose, passing with 100% within 34 minutes (out of one hour).
Alignment
Currently fighting my way through the jungle of job hunting.
After many rejections, I finally got an invitation for a pre-interview call ā and I declined.
It looked good on paper. I wasnāt particularly enthusiastic about the products, but it would have been a comfortable job.
My intuition gave me a big fat no.
āYOU COULD HAVE JUST GONE FOR THE EXPERIENCE,ā I heard my parentsā voices in my head.
I see this as a side effect of doing spiritual practice:
Being okay with living a life in integrity that may sometimes look irrational from the outside.
Being not okay with lying and faking enthusiasm where there is none ā and wasting peopleās time.
Iām 100% certain thereās a role out there for me where I donāt have to make myself like it.
I sat with this decision for many days.
Maybe it was stupid and I shouldnāt have been so stubborn.
Maybe it was good to stay true to myself.
I donāt know.
But what I know is that I donāt want to make decisions mainly driven by fear ā and money is an area where things get distorted very easily.
Movement
I had to tone down the intensity of my workouts for a few weeks after the chiropractic adjustment, though I donāt think I overdid it too much.
After unlocking the press to handstand last year, a stalder press to handstand is my next ambitious project.
(A post about my handstand journey is coming soon.)
Tuck planche, muscle up, and human flag are other goals for the year. I want to figure out a workout plan that is not too rigid and allows me to progress slowly, but steadily.
In this video, I succeeded for the first time getting into a handstand on parallettes through the puppy press. Iām making more use of parallettes these days as spending too much time on my hands strains the wrists.
New on the Website
- I kicked off the year with my first 365-day project: 365 Essences. So far it is going surprisingly well, since I chose to stick to a minimum goal of one senryū per day.
- Iām in the process of leaving Instagram and found a very good solution for duplicating my feed. Itās not complete yet, but hereās the current version.
- In plastic and ai is the new human and i spent more time on linkedin than with my own heart, I channelled my frustration about our digitalised and performance-driven world that is driving me crazy.
- I finished writing Vortex of Self as a reminder to myself to stay in my own power.
- The Longing is a short poem about the deep yearning for a transcendent life.
Thoughts for February
- I have too many drafts waiting to be published. Iām thinking of dedicating 1-2 days specifically to finishing them.
- I need a proper start page and branding. Iāve been collecting a lot of new design ideas - this monthly has been a good practice again.
- Iād love to dedicate deep-dive days to my ongoing projects Root-Seeking Journey and Madeira Diaries.
(My respect for people who are able to stick to and finish big projects grows day by day.) - Overall, I need more structure in my work, and to be okay with posting less frequently, but with more focus and higher quality.
- Expansion was one of my main intentions last year, and Iāll carry it with me into 2026! šš