Interruption
Mountains rose in jagged, ancient layers.
I was flying — landing in a meditation cave over a vast view.
Quiet.
Dreams reveal the parts of us untouched by conditioning —
I recently came across a story from The World Could Be Otherwise — a story that shows the power of imagination. In these times, it feels especially potent.
The Story of Robert Desnos
Robert Desnos was a French surrealist poet. During World War II, he went underground to fight for the Resistance. He was captured and sent to the concentration camps.
One day, Desnos and many other men were crowded onto the bed of a truck transporting prisoners from the barracks. They understood exactly where they were going. The trucks always left full and returned empty. Their destination was the gas chambers.
No one spoke. Eyes lowered. Faces grim.
When the truck arrived, the prisoners descended slowly and silently. Even the guards — usually joking and loud — fell quiet, unable to escape the mood.
Then the silence broke.
One of the men suddenly jumped up, turned, and grabbed the hand of the man behind him. His body coiled with energy, he began to read the man’s palm.
“I am so excited for you!” he exclaimed.
“You are going to live a very long life! You will have three children! A beautiful wife! Wealth! Peace! Joy!”
One by one, other men reached out their hands. Each received the same vision: long life, love, beauty, freedom.
As palm after palm was read, the atmosphere transformed. The prisoners smiled. They laughed. They clapped one another on the back. Their burden lifted. Reality shifted.
Even the guards were affected.
The dark spell under which they had been living — where marching men to slaughter felt normal — began to fracture. Confused and disoriented, they could not go through with the executions.
The prisoners were marched back onto the truck and returned to the barracks.
Through this spontaneous act of imagination — this poetic rupture in reality — Desnos saved himself and every man in that line.
He survived the camps, but not the war. He died of typhus shortly after liberation.
When I read this story, I felt the vast possibility of the human mind.
Desnos refused collapse.
Imagination liberated.
We are often trained toward resignation.
We can tune differently.
Everything is listening.
Your nervous system is listening.
This is why yoga and meditation matter.
Why movement matters.
Why nature matters.
Why sleep matters.
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche teaches:
“The dream is a laboratory for the mind.”
In dreams, a whole world appears.
We sense it.
And somehow, even while inside it, we know it’s a dream.
It’s often the daytime that convinces us more.
Stories form.
We believe them.
We tell ourselves, this is how it is,
and everything nods along.
And then — sometimes — we notice, we relax.
Reality loosens.
Things feel lighter.
More spacious.
Imagination isn’t about making things up.
It’s the capacity to see differently.
A quiet practice.
A nervous system shift.
A way of remembering what’s possible.
SOLSTICE: A RETURN TO LIGHT
Standing at the Winter Solstice —
the deepest night before the return of the sun.
It’s like a dream space:
quiet,
tender,
liminal,
luminous.
Light returns not because it is forced —
but because it is in the nature of things to rise.
A simple Solstice practice:
– Breathe slowly, deeply.
– Move your body in ways that feel nourishing.
– Sip something warm.
– Turn off your devices.
– Read something that opens your inner world.
– And when you lie down at night, ask your dreams to show you what is still possible.
Let imagination become your companion again.
Let the mind loosen.
Let the nervous system soften.
Let the spark return.
If your imagination is pulling you toward rest, ritual, ocean, movement, and renewal…
I want to personally invite you.
Jenn Hoover and I are gathering a small group in Mexico for a Wellness Retreat at Playa Viva, February 21–28, 2026.
This retreat is something I truly care about — a week shaped by nature, embodied practice, and deep restoration. It’s a space to reset your nervous system, reconnect with yourself, and remember what’s possible when life slows down.
There are only a few spaces remaining.
If this has been tugging at you — even quietly — I would genuinely love to have you with us.
✨ $150 off or a complimentary massage if you join before December 31st.
You’re welcome to reply directly to this email if you want to talk it through, or click through for details.
MUSINGS
Books I’m reading:
COMMUNITY
Luna and I wish you a Happy Holiday.
May your dreams guide you.
May you listen.
If this resonated, feel free to subscribe on Substack or pass it along to someone who might enjoy.
With love,