WE-AR is the mantra 'I Am, or 'We Are,' meaning all is one. We are one. Our name is a nucleus of our ethos and informs everything we do. We choose to act with kindness to create a ripple effect of well being.
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In Connection is a new monthly note from our world to yours, created as a place to share some of the things that are capturing our attention and enriching our everyday lives. We’ll be gathering the people doing thoughtful things, places worth knowing, ideas we’re sitting with, and the books, rituals, food, music, movement and objects we find ourselves returning to.
Importantly, we hope it becomes a conversation rather than simply something you receive from us. We want to hear what is inspiring you too, and to create a space where ideas and recommendations can move freely between our team and the wider WE-AR community.
This month, we’re looking upwards at the night sky, taking more time over our morning routines, finding new ideas in the pages we’re reading, returning to the theatre and gathering what spring is growing around us.
Here are a few things inspiring the WE-AR team right now.
[1] READ
I Eat the Stars — Sarah Wilson
A strangely invigorating read. Drawing together broad and deep research spanning macroeconomics, scientific history, the industrial petrochemical complex, existential philosophy and poetry, Sarah makes a compelling case for letting go of the idea that we can simply fight our way forward from within the systems we have inherited.
Instead, she turns our attention to what we can cherish, preserve and nurture in ourselves and in one another as the vast, complex systems of civilisation move towards levels of overcomplication that seem to no longer be sustainable. The question becomes less ‘how do we fix everything?’ and more ‘who can we be for each other now?’
A thoughtful and unexpectedly hopeful exploration of how we might live with greater freedom, love and presence at a challenging moment in history. — Jyoti
[2] EAT
Eat Your Greens
Spring brings with it an abundance of fresh green things, and we’re happily putting them on just about everything.
A staple breakfast around here is soft-boiled eggs with pecorino, lemon and good extra virgin olive oil, finished with sunflower sprouts and brassica mix from Eat Your Greens, all piled onto a humble slice of Vogel’s.
Best enjoyed slowly, preferably somewhere in the morning sunshine. — Kat
[3] LOOK UP
An evening ritual
Lately, I’ve been making a small ritual of stepping outside in the evening and looking up. Taking the time to notice where the moon is, how much light it is carrying and what else is visible in the night sky has become a quiet way of marking the passing days.
It made me realise how rarely we really look upwards unless we’re away from the city, camping somewhere beneath a much bigger sky. There is something grounding about remembering that all of this is happening above us every night, whether we stop to notice it or not. — Nushka
[4] MORNING RITUAL
The beauty of less
There is something lovely about slowing down the morning rather than immediately rushing into the day. Recently, that has meant taking a little more time to get ready and rediscovering the pleasure of doing my makeup intentionally.
I've been drawn to Aleph Beauty and its less-is-more approach to beauty: thoughtful, multifunctional products that encourage you to work with your skin rather than cover it completely.
It’s a small thing, but giving an everyday ritual a little more attention has a way of changing the pace of everything that follows. — Bayley
[5] LISTEN
An evening at the Opera
I recently attended a performance of The Pearl Fishers by Bizet at the Aotea Centre. The new production was visually stunning, and the set and costume designs by Yannis Thavoris were mesmerising. The operatic Pearl Fishers Duet is captivating and a favourite of mine. I'm looking forward to seeing more events in the city this summer, with Olivia Dean at the newly renovated Western Springs next on the calendar. — Katy
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We hope In Connection becomes something you contribute to as much as we do. If you’ve read something you can’t stop thinking about, found a new ritual, eaten somewhere wonderful, discovered a piece of music or simply noticed something beautiful lately, we’d love to know.
Email us here and tell us what you’re loving this spring. We may share a few favourites from the WE-AR community in our next volume.
In connection,
WE-AR