For the Dandelions

By: Gabriela Yareliz

My favorite flower as a kid was a daisy. I loved a wild daisy. They were sunny and bright. I never discriminated against a sunny and bright dandelion, though. If there is a flower I touched a lot in life, it was that one.

I have memories of playing house or wedding with childhood friends, and we would gather the dandelions, which were abundant in Michigan, and make bouquets out of them.

At recess, just as I sat chewing on honeysuckle flowers and picking clovers in a patch, I also spent time blowing dandelions into the wind a million times.

There is something special about a dandelion. They can grow through a crack in concrete and thrive. They go from sunny yellow to fluffy white bulbs of confetti magic.

Apparently, psychologists even call some children “dandelion children.”

From Permission to Feel by Marc Brackett, Ph.D.:

A University of California-San Fransisco study split children into categories to see how:

“‘sensitive’ children (re-ferred to as “orchids”) respond to environmental changes compared with how ‘resilient’ children (who they call ‘dandelions’) react.

Dandelion children may thrive in most any condition, whereas orchid children tend to be more fearful and overwhelmed in uncertain social situations. Whether an orchid or a dandelion child does better or worse likely has to do with how families, teachers, and peers support their emotional development. If neglected, orchid children promptly wither—but if they are raised in supportive conditions, they not only survive but flourish compared with dandelion children. Emotion skills are likely the antecedent to building resilience.”

I was a dandelion child, and maybe you were, too.

When I read this, I thought of the Ella Langley song— couldn’t help myself:

Dandelion born to live free, ridin’ on a breeze
On a summer night
Tucked back in the weeds, guess that’s just me
In a bed of red roses, I’m the one growin’ up on the wilder side
So if you’re tired of thorns, I’m a little more dandelion

No stranger to a dirt road or a country muddy river bank
If you’re pickin’ me, you oughta know
I wasn’t made for a fancy crystal vase
A mason jar and old blue jeans, from my roots to my boots, I’ll always be

Stay resilient. This one goes out to all my fellow dandelions. ✨

The Setup

“Chronic stress management is not optional — it is hormonal maintenance.” Rich Girl Academy

By: Gabriela Yareliz

I was reading a piece on declining fertility the other day, and it made a point to highlight that hormonal imbalances in women today don’t just belong to the woman in the present, but we are set up by our parents’ health at the time of conception (and whatever they got from their parents). Affecting you in the womb was what your mother inherited from her mother and grandmother, every processed food, environmental toxins exposure, every box dye, every perm, every cigarette or second-hand smoke, drugs, the trauma— all of it, plus whatever impacted your father’s genes.

I bring this up because whatever we do today impacts generations after us. The generational thing is so real and held in the ovaries. My future child (hopefully) will be impacted by my parents but also my choices, my husband’s choices— and my grandchildren, too.

It’s a wild web and chain reaction. It makes us think every time we have a choice. To stress or not to stress, excess sugar or skip the sugar, where we live, pollution, the chemical option vs the more wholesome option. Choices add up and make a difference. And eventually they set up generations to come.

While a lot of today’s problems can be exacerbated by the present, they were set up by the past. May we think of that every day. Today will be the past someday.

Set up wisely.

This Week’s Favorites 08.21.26

I saw parents dropping off their kids to some of their last 9 am taekwondo classes before classes start up here. (Classes start so late here—) You could feel the end of summer hanging in the cool 68F air after yesterday’s rainstorm, flooding and apparently, Long Island tornado.

Back to school reminds me of the nostalgic college football “beat” t-shirts.

Another week is in the books.

This week, I started reading Permission to Feel, and I have really been enjoying it. I whip it out on my kindle when the trains decide to be assholes, and that has been often, lately.

I spent the day cleaning and listening to podcasts in the background. Feeling all the early fall vibes. Also, I went for round 1 of the Function Health blood draw. Excited (and terrified) to see what comes out of that. Now, I am taking a breather. I wanted to share my favorites from the week before I do some light stretching and Pvolve.

Let’s do this—

“A writer—and, I believe, generally all persons—must think that whatever happens to him or her is a resource. All things have been given to us for a purpose, and an artist must feel this more intensely. All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassments, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art.” Jorge Luis Borges

The Creative Power of Invisibility.

“You’re a product of your environment. Live somewhere that inspires you.” Juliet Allen

Nikki Garcia.

“Learning another language gives you access to joints your native language doesn’t have. It makes you a more supple thinker. It makes the world feel larger and more interesting than it did before.” Rich Girl Academy

This trio of brothers:

“Find your people. Be someone’s battle buddy. Cheer someone on. And when you need it, let someone cheer for you, too.” Susan B.

Via Prime Video. All the fall vibes.
Rainier Wylde

“We have lost our damn minds. I really think that Covid fried people’s brains, and they’ve simply never recovered. We were gaslit to hell, of course.” Spencer Pratt

This week’s song (felt this one in my bones, and her white dress is a dream):

Also, Ella Langley makes me want to get bangs again. But I won’t look as cool. 😂 So I refrain from self-sabotage.

Protection

“Someone perceiving you incorrectly can be a form of spiritual protection.” I read that somewhere, and it stayed on my mind.

Let’s Go, Ellaaaaaa

By: Gabriela Yareliz

It’s an exciting day for Ms. Langley. I really love her music, and clearly, I am not alone. It was a real treat to hear cover bands cover her songs in Nashville.

In honor of her breaking the Billboard record (and because this video is pure art)— I just have to:

And yes, I do hope she and Theo are magically soulmates. I am part of that crew. Ha. Never forget.

Some other favs:

A Rainy Day

By: Gabriela Yareliz

It’s raining inside of my train car. It’s not supposed to be raining in here, but there is a steady drip-drip. An Asian girl held out her hand and laughed, trying to catch a drop of the mystery liquid falling.

I almost opened my umbrella in here, but instead moved to another seat. Can you imagine an open umbrella inside of a train? I guess we’ve seen weirder things.

On my way to the train today (I was scurrying along), I ran into a woman who physically posed as an obstacle in front of me (not letting me pass) and showed me an address on her phone. It was an address to a building near the water. She had a ways to walk. I gestured for her, telling her to keep going straight, and she started yelling at me angrily that she didn’t speak English. No good deed goes unpunished.

I plugged in the address into her maps app, which speaks her language, and she almost threw her phone at me. She, I guess, wanted me to personally walk her to the building that was blocks and blocks away during rush hour as I was trying to get to work. I DON’T SPEAK ENGLISH, she continued to yell at me. Can you read a map in your language? I asked and physically removed her from how she was blocking me at the scaffold entrance. She pouted, and I ran off wondering what insanity people are today. They are straight up unhinged.

Do I look matronly in this shirt, I asked myself catching a glimpse of myself in the window. Too late, I decided as I continued to semi-jog down the sidewalk.

I pulled up the Joe and the Juice app, and they were out of a key ingredient for every protein shake and smoothie. Why they opened today is beyond me.

I am back on the train, next to a girl with a blueberry iPhone case. She is sitting under the constant drip of the train. It’s raining inside.

It’s one of those days where it rains inside.

Your Time

I was reminded about time by Gary Vee and Andy Frisella. Andy Frisella, creator of 75hard and 1st Phorm, is always an inspiration.

Andy Frisella shared this photo of him at age 36, ten years ago. Sometimes, all we need to do is recognize the time we have and take responsibility for it.

Andy Frisella then.
Andy Frisella now.

And it’s not just about the physical transformation. Let’s be real, the physical followed the mental transformation.

#WeDotheWork