Thank you Sandra Wells, Darcy Schwerin, Elizabeth Jane Lovely, Kim Beller, Sammy Wan, and several others for tuning into my live video with our dear friend Alessandra Olanow.
Begin Again and Again and Again is a nurturing book that serves us all in our process, giving us permission and care when things fall apart—again—necessitating the energy, compassion and grace to start over. To treat ourselves with deep kindness. To listen to what’s happening, and what’s needed. Alessandra’s humility is an example and her art is a salve for our times.
With space, time, grace, simplicity, and skill, she shows us feelings visually; my experience is that each image helps me reorganize my relationship to reality.
This treasured time spent in her presence, with a cameo from James who loves this book and plans to gift it to some dear humans in our lives, features peeks inside both this book and her heart.
As you see her drawings, hear passages and receive permission to feel, what emerges for you today? For me, I’m reminded to sit still, to take rest, to read my book and not be worried that I’m “wasting time.” Gah. You?
With a paid subscription, you’ll be invited to attend monthly Live Gatherings on first Fridays, comment on all posts, and access all archives. Paid subscription revenue is donated to causes benefiting women and girls. If you have financial need, a handful of scholarship subscriptions are available each month; message me and I’ll arrange.
Follow Alessandra’s art here; her site is here.
REVIEWS
"Olanow brings readers into her internal world with Begin Again, delicately and beautifully depicting the subtle murmurs of awakening present within us all."
—Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Finding Your Way
"Olanow transforms the pain of unraveling into the art of becoming with words and illustrations that make you feel deeply seen. This book holds space for all the versions of yourself you've been and all the ones you're becoming."
—Yung Pueblo, #1 NYT Bestselling Author
With reminders to relinquish our grasp, choose our focus, and select which thoughts we believe, Alessandra's words and illustrations are an invitation to rewrite the narrative and remember that the ache is a good place to Begin Again, and Again, and Again. —Elena Brower, bestselling author and artist of Practice You and Hold Nothing
