The Law Of Rhythm
A playlist for the heart.
Happy Scorpio season! It’s been a minute. So much life has taken place, and so many things are currently on pause. This shutdown is certainly a contributing factor. I can’t help but see the similarities between 2020 and 2025. Lowkey, 2025 feels like the action/horror sequel to the psychological thriller that was 2020.
In March of 2020, we’d entered a global shutdown. In that time, we had no choice but to sit with ourselves and the people we shared space with. Before that, we had routines and “third-spaces” that kept us connected, engaged, and in community. The panny came and thrust us into stillness and isolation. And stillness can dredge up a lot of hidden stuff. Many of us met parts of ourselves we’d never seen before… parts we might not have wanted to meet. It was a time that stirred internal (and external) shifts.
Unemployment. Lost businesses. Grief. The threat of a life-threatening virus. The rise of the Black Lives Matter movement (and them goddamn black squares). PPP loans. Stimulus checks. Anxiety and depression spikes. But also increased wellness accessibility, an explosion of telehealth services (including therapy), and a rapid commercialization of how we engage online. I mean Zoom, Meta, and TikTok replaced much of our in-person connections, planting seeds for parasocial relationships. Yet, through the chaos, we also learned a lot via these platforms. Truths began surfacing that had been hidden in plain sight. It was a time that radicalized many… but we were severely disembodied. By the time things opened back up again, there was a 25% increase in anxiety and depression rates. We were happy to be outside again, but shit just wasn’t the same. Many of the spaces we used to frequent went out of business, our routines shifted, we lost some loved ones, and our communities became fragmented. We returned to work, with a deep sense of confusion about what had happened. And we lost touch with our bodies and the land that holds us.
Today, we’re facing different kind of shutdown, one that is far greater than the 3 weeks that have been in the headlines. And there is a sense of angst in the air, one that poses a greater threat because we’re outside, our rights/resources are (seemingly) at risk, and the decision makers of the world are banking that the trends of cruelty and isolation will outweigh humanity and connectedness. We’ve witnessed A LOT of chaos, but if we pause to reflect, we can kind of recognize the rhythm. It’s familiar. Patterns echo. Social media has been incredibly instrumental to this cycle. Consider the ways in which our attention has been farmed. Look at the ways cruelty and violence often find their way into our digital “feeds.” I mean, the algorithm is programmed to disempower us by feeding us content that stirs fear, doubt, scarcity, and apathy. And we have to admit, the algorithm does it’s thing in that regard—with our help, of course. We teach it nearly everything about us. So it’s safe to say that artificial intelligence has nothing on the technology within us that longs for meaningful and spiritual connection to one another. That technology is our humanity.
Our assignment is to utilize this pause to our advantage, and get into a practice of reconnecting the mind and heart (heart coherence).
The Libra New Moon came through a few days ago, inviting a Venusian reset: a softening of heart posture, a breath, a recalibration. A chance to rethink how we show up in our work, our creativity, and our relationships (with ourselves and others). Because for many of us, this pause has either bruised the ego or shaken our sense of security. But what if we used this stillness to ask: “What shift in perspective will turn this moment into gold?” “What creative tool can I tap into to improve my situation—or support someone else?” Service is, after all, a huge part of our purpose.
What we learned from 2020 is that mental health is vital. The current climate is urging us to embrace heart health. It’s time we start (and remain in) a constant practice of searching the content of our hearts. Through examination, through feeling, through compassion, and in action. Use this time to reflect: The ways you speak to yourself inform the ways you see and interact with the world around you. Notice your thought forms and patterns. Where can you meet yourself and others with tenderness and compassion? Explore your contributions to recent fallouts or breakups. What are some ways you can transmute fear-based thinking into heart-centered living?
Also: cultivate curiosity. Get curious about who you are beyond the roles you play at work and other areas of life (hint: your are so much more than you know). Get curious about what brings you joy—and do those things. Get curious about what your gifts are and ways to nurture them. Think outside the box.
If we spend more time looking down at our phones than we do looking up at the sky, it becomes far too easy to believe that we’re living in an age of survival and doom. And yes—it’s important to to be informed and aware of what’s happening in this dimension. It is equally important to remember that we are multidimensional beings. This moment, this plane, is only one expression of reality. In truth, we are in a season of innovation and upgrade. This is a collective initiation into new ways of existing. We’re being asked to lean into the feminine, collaborate with the elements, (re)build steady foundations and in-person networks, practice generosity, love unconditionally, and master the art of relating to one another. Humanity is the ultimate technology. So let’s reboot and get to this soul work. Our legacy is greater than virality.
Question ain’t “Do we have resources to rebuild?”
It’s “Do we have the will?” — Michael Eugene Archer a.k.a. D’Angelo