Monthly chai date

November on my side of the world involves walking on dry and crunchy leaves, unpacking the knitted scarves and hats, running out of makeup remover after wearing this year's Halloween Frido Kahlo get-up more than once, and confirming holiday plans with family and friends. Oh, and STARBUCKS RED CUPS, which I am not ashamed to admit bring much joy to my season.Over chai, I would ask you about your initial days into this new month. What have you been finishing, starting, and where are you finding moments of joy?With my knitting needles clicking as my chai cools to a drinkable temperature, I would share how much I miss playing the piano. I really miss it. I used to be pretty great, and it has been almost 10 years since I played with any regularity. I realized the other day that I have very few people in my life who even know that I play, and even fewer (just my parents) who remember what it sounded like. Eventually, in this life, I will salvage one of the Craigslist pianos that people give away, use my hard-earned money to tune it, and have myself a Regina-Spektor-Ben-Folds-Bach-worthy throwdown on those black-and-whites. Just thinking about it brings me joy. When that day comes, it is going to be awkward at first, and then awesome.I have found my midwife self saying the following phrases on repeat to women lately: "You deserve to feel powerful right now and always." "We only do this life once, and every day have new opportunities to make it exactly like we want." "Contractions cannot be stronger than you, because they are you." (last quote stolen from an unknown source). Feel free to use as needed!Thank goodness for chai, because thus far, this time change has brought me nothing but trouble. I'm not sleeping well, the dog is convinced that we have forgotten how to care for him correctly and regularly lets us know about it, and in Chi-town it doesn't bring me enough light in the morning to actually make running as a woman feel safer at 5am, on top of the fact that it removes the post-work running light in the afternoons. #dissatisfiedDo you remember the last time someone told you they were proud of you? Remember how great that felt, especially after you worked really hard toward something? And now think about how many people in your life you're proud of. Lots, right? Tell them.Chai in hand, I would ask you the name of that contraption people wear to monitor their level of radiation exposure, and what your thoughts are about creating one of those to detect too high levels of midwife and feminist negativity, to alert the wearer in an effort to avoid burnout. Patent pending, this could be my big break on money-making and paying off my student loans. I'll keep you posted.Recently I read on a friend's comment feed that birth empowerment education could be compared to blaming rape victims, in that the process by which people learn moral and appropriate behavior should be addressed, rather than fixing the end of the problem. Mind = blown. I'm going to need a few days to simmer on that.One hour ago, I caught my 100th baby, born in the caul. (!!!!!!!!)Finishing the last dredges of my sweet elixir, I would make sure I haven't been the one doing all the chatting. What is November like where you are? What hobbies do you miss and are planning to make time for? What phrases or stories have been on repeat, importantly or distractedly so? How's the time change for you (sending good thoughts that it's been better than mine!)? What exposure to negative fields or forces are you limiting lately? Did you hear or read something recently that blew your mind? And what success would you share from the past 24 hours?Here's to a great month, crunchy leaves and cauls included.- Stephanie