Author: Rachel Manetti

Sometimes rest is necessary. Not because the work is done, but because the work is going. Ever going. And yet here and now in this drop of time hides stillness, an                      open                  secret. (shhhhh….) Rest now, little […]

My kids have been tracked out since June 6th. Scratch that. My kids have been out of school since June 6th. Scratch that. At least one kid has been out of school since June 6th. Truth. (Took me a few rounds to get there but made it.) First, we had almost 5 weeks of track […]

“Woah… look at me go!!!” 8 year old Nora’s sitting at the kitchen table. She appears still and upright but her eyes are wide and intense. “uh-huh…” I reply hesitantly as I scrunch my face in confusion. She giggles, knowing she’s got me. “The Earth is spinning SO FAST!!!!!!!!!!!” she says as she leans hard left. […]

“You know, the craziest thing about the ocean is that the actual water particles don’t ever move… they just push against each other creating what we see as waves,” my big sister muses to me as we gaze over the horizon of endless blue. huh. yes. I still can’t quite grasp this reality. It’s slippery. […]

“YOU PUT YOUR RIGHT ARM IN, YOU PUT YOUR RIGHT ARM OUT, YOU PUT YOUR RIGHT ARM IN AND YOU S.H.A.K.E. IT ALL ABOUT!!! YOU DO THE HOKEY POKEY AND YOU TURN YOURSELF AROUND, THAT’S WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT!!!” I’m downstairs cleaning up the kitchen from dinner before we leave for our bi-annual camping trip […]

In 2018, I lost someone very dear to me. With the deafening silence of deep grief came a world that was too loud. WAY too loud. In the early days of stunned stillness, I knew I needed to quiet the input. Shutup the excess. Release the chatter. Be in the vastness of loss. I knew I needed […]

Getting myself out of bed when I’m camping isn’t so hard. The sun comes up and the day’s fresh-born light spills over into the world. The birds test their voices once more. The sound of the ocean waves creeps over the dunes and up the hill into my ears. It’s natural to awaken early when camping, […]

I’m annoyed by the world. Good for no one. Irritated by everything. My head is aching on the inside. Left side of my jaw is buzzing. Tongue feels thick as a beef steak. It’s hard to feel icky. Really hard. Not sick. Icky.  I hate how I am for other people when I’m in this […]

Open the little stapled book and it reads, Nice job. Good kick! I believe in you. Would you like to play? How’s it going? That’s all. hmm. I smile at this under-the-bed find. “Did you make this during quiet time?” “huh? Oh yeah,” she says. A little book of words. Those words are skill in […]

I don’t know have many words right now. Some days are just like that. There’s a lot rolling around in this thing I call Body. A pretzel of sorts including (but not limited to) amazement, disgust, sadness, grief, longing, gratitude, numbness. A pretzel with each twist barely resting before riding into a new turn. (Missing all […]