I have a left sliding door problem

Tonight's pink full moon wants you to stop putting "it" off

A year ago, my Honda Odyssey Minivan, the reluctant choice yet essential chariot of mothers everywhere, started beeping at me. “Left sliding door problem,” it would warn every so often. But the left sliding door, the one I used multiple times a day to get my son in and out of his car seat, was getting the job done, and so I ignored it. Too much on my plate to take such an inconsequential warning seriously. Left sliding door problem, like so many other little problems and inconveniences, got dismissed, just as my car suggested.

I kept driving. To school, to camp, to the never-ending doctor appointments, to the market, to local trips a few hours away. Adulting kept calling on me to keep racing forward, and I remained firmly in the driver’s seat. But the warning didn’t stop. In preparing this post, I realized it has been a full year since the warnings started, and today, the beeping is simply unignorable. That, and the door sometimes doesn’t want to open, or close, a perilous thing when you consider it’s my children I’m shuttling around. My most precious cargo. How did I ignore the warning for so long? I ask, rhetorically, because you and I both know how.

I’m finally getting around to taking it in, and I’m grimacing at the knowledge that this little beeping problem is going to probably cost $1,000 to fix. I’m grimacing further as I realize that had I taken it in at first beep, it would have probably still been covered under the car’s warranty. Maybe. I’m not sure. But you better believe I’ll find a way to blame myself for not handling this the right way anyway. Because that’s what we do, right?

My thyroid nodule at its worst in 2020 right before I finally got treatment. If you need treatment ideas for a benign thyroid nodule, message me. I am not a doctor and I don’t have medical advice, but I did advocate for myself and save my thyroid.

The point of this post isn’t me, or my car. It’s about the endless warnings we get in our lives, especially from our bodies, that we dismiss. The ache in your hip, the pain in your tooth, the frustration that keeps building and building until one day we pop. I know for me, when I finally got diagnosed with a thyroid condition, after the shock wore off, I realized the signs had been there — not just for days or months, but for years. My body had been gently beeping to get my attention. I didn’t pay attention until I had a 3.5 cm thyroid nodule protruding from my neck. How could I not notice such a thing? I was too busy adulting, something I’m sure you understand all too well.

A poem from my upcoming book, Moon Garden. Preorder your copy here.

I’m learning to listen a little bit sooner. To heed the warnings — of my car, of my body, of the universe. It’s not easy to shift away from flight or fight mode, when you’re in a current state of urgency and only the most pressing things get taken care of. It’s not easy, but it is possible: as long as what you prioritize is love. Especially love for yourself.

Tonight we will experience the Pink Full Moon in all her glory. She is — from start to finish — all about love. Not the loud, often fleeting kind, but the quiet, restorative kind of love that asks you to slow down and listen. To heed the beeping, the aching, the whisper that something within you needs tending. The full moon is the perfect time to honor the parts of ourselves we've dismissed or delayed. Under her rich light, we remember: love is not just a feeling — it's a decision to pay attention.

A poem from my upcoming book, Moon Garden. Preorder your copy here.

So today, I want you to ask yourself: what warning has my body been trying to give me that I’ve been ignoring? How can I commit to heeding the warnings now, instead of later?

Here’s a song to listen to about the Pink Moon that will help you connect with the full moon tonight as you answer this question.

This newsletter is inspired by my upcoming book, Moon Garden: Poetry for Manifestation. Moon by moon and poem by poem, nurture your journey of self discovery and co-creation in alignment with the universe. As you embrace nature’s rhythm, you will unlock your deepest desires, truths, and purpose. By honoring your intuition, setting intentions, and taking daily action, manifestation—the realization of your dreams—will naturally follow.

Why preorder? Because that’s what tells bookstores that this is going to be a hot book and inspires them to order copies for their stores. Preorders can make or break a book. Thank you for making Moon Garden a success and making it possible for me to keep writing.