new year (of the 🐎), new us

Ramadan. Lent. The Lunar New Year. A new moon. Eclipse season. All arriving at once. The symbolism is working overtime to get our attention. With all these rituals of restraint and renewal converging at once, I can’t help but wonder if this is some portal to a collective reset (tysm for this literary device, C. Bradshaw). Or, more likely, it’s just wishful thinking but stay with me here.

If we’re judging by energy alone, something is different.

To recap, in case you are new to Earth, the Year of the Snake was far from gentle. It asked us to stop romanticizing what was unsustainable. It pushed us to confront uncomfortable truths about ourselves + the systems we move within. The shedding was personal and, communal.

Now, we are stepping into the Year of the Horse; into a year that moves. In my last post, I wrote about how this moment in beauty x culture is all about reclaiming joy.

Happiness is building momentum.

It feels like it’s about to rush toward us, loudly and undeniably. (Florence + the Machine’s Dog Days Are Over is the perfect soundtrack for this emotional thesis, bb.)

Looking ahead, I predict this year will be shaped by everything we just relearned the hard way.

We’re meant to do life together, in community.

We’re meant to include each other in tangible, everyday ways. Sharing meals, exchanging ideas, and laughing at our own plot twists until we can’t breathe. Those moments, those evenings, that’s the best of what life is. We should indulge in more of it, all the time.

Luckily, the culture is beginning to reflect these values again. Dinner parties are back. Friends are meeting more often. Mahjong tiles are clicking across kitchen tables. Hobbies are stepping out of exile, as productivity loosens its grip on our measure of worth. Phones are increasingly forgotten, stacked in other rooms.

The air feels lighter because we’ve changed. We’ve returned to what matters. Sebastian Maniscalco, maybe, just maybe, we’re ready to open front doors and welcome company into our homes again. 💖

first + second white horse and crystal mosque images sourced via Sara Shakeel. third image: a mirror selfie sourced from my camera roll 💛