Dear reader,

Have you ever caught yourself rushing through something, just to check it off your list? Maybe you attend a yoga class to say you did it. Or you journal, do gratitude practice, meditate, work out or pray because it’s what you’re supposed to do.

But here’s the question: are we doing these things simply to get them done, or are we actually stepping into them in the frequency of being, intention and presence?

There is a difference. And it’s profound.

I had the pleasure of meeting a beautiful human here in Ubud who has practiced Zen sitting meditation and taught me about the true power of sitting.

She gave me this book “How To Sit” by Thich Nhat Hanh, and in it, he writes:

“Sometimes people say they don’t know what to do when they are sitting. ‘You only need to sit!’ is an exhortation of Soto Zen meditation school. It means that you should sit without waiting for a miracle, and that includes the miracle of enlightenment. If you always sit in expectation, you’re not in the present moment. The present moment contains the whole of life.”

So often, we miss the integration of the present because we are always chasing what’s next. We expect enlightenment. We expect transformation. We even expect gratitude to deliver us more to be grateful for.

But the true magic? It’s in simply sitting. Simply being.

This is the greatest thing I am learning here in Bali at the moment. Appreciating this very moment for all that it is, without needing it to be anything else. When we release expectation, we free ourselves to fully immerse in the now and the now will reveal everything we need.

The whole life is in the present moment.

Everything you need is in the now, if you just stop to listen.

Take a deep breath. Right now. Feel the richness of this present moment—without needing it to be different.

Life’s miracles aren’t hidden in the future or buried in the past. They are right here, waiting for us to notice.

But how often do we miss them because our minds are somewhere else?

An Invitation:
This week, I invite you to practice the art of sitting—not for enlightenment, not for a checklist, but just for the being. Maybe that’s sitting with your morning coffee, journaling without expectation, or simply breathing and noticing the life around you and feelings within you.

Let’s sit with what matters most. Together.

This Friday, I am taking a ferry to go to Gili Air island to go spend Christmas solo.

To be alone at Christmas is not my usual jam, but my heart called me to do it. And as you know, when your heart calls, you gotta answer.

My intention is to go there to sit and to be with everything Bali and 2024 has brought me to fully integrate everything before starting 2025.

Stay tuned! This will be uncomfortable, but also exactly what I need right now.

Heartfully,
Essi

PS: I’m diving into YouTube more now as longer form video is calling my heart. I got a new series launching this week: Raw + Real Life Talks.

In these unscripted videos, I’ll get raw and real. I share what it’s like to ride the rollercoaster of emotions as I connect and move through my own life’s changes.

Tonight, a big thunderstorm in Bali has slowed my internet, so the newest video is still uploading. Subscribe below, and you’ll be notified as soon as it’s live!