It was a warmish night during rainy season in my beloved Costa Rica (aka my spirit homeland).

My twin girls were 8 years old and I remember waking them up a little before midnight.

Together we left our house and walked along the beach under a full moon.

We were joining a Costa Rican friend who worked in animal conservation in order to witness a mama sea turtle in labor.

For hours she pushed, until finally she slowly walked away and her eggs lay underneath, deep in the sand.

It was breathtaking.

Years later, on that same beach, we were privileged to see the other side of the process. In the middle of an early dinner at a beachside bar, we witnessed the sudden hatching of baby sea turtles, climbing out of the sand from their eggs, and making their way down to the sea.

Those tiny turtles, the size of my palm, would try to find their way in, wave after wave, until finally a wave would carry them out - to swim, grow old and, if they were to one day have babies, find their way back home.

To build a nest right on the very beach where they were born.

I’ve always been in awe of that fact. These huge marine reptiles undertake multiyear, epic migrations at sea but they return to where they were born to mate and lay their own eggs and continue the cycle of life.

Fast forward to 2022.

My daughter Sydney just returned from Ecuador where she was part of an animal conservation program in the Galapagos (her stories put these islands even higher on my bucket list).

Sydney’s photos and videos blew me away as she swam alongside sea turtles that were larger than her own body.

So this is why I chose the turtle as our animal messenger this month!

By now you may remember that my members and I search for a new animal each month.

Inevitably, no matter what we choose, I’m fascinated by how many times we see it - in real life, on a website, or on a stranger’s tee. (Instagram will probably throw one in my feed right about now…hi Siri!).

I encourage this playful game each month for a few reasons:

• First, if there’s one way to shed stress for a moment, it’s by tuning in and getting present.
• Second, I want to remind you that once you know what it is you’re looking for, you will find it. You just have to get clear on what it is you are seeking, tune in and then trust.
• Third, it’s fun. Especially if you don’t have time for play (ahem, I will help you make the time). This game is something you can do in the background of anything to lighten up your days and “game-ify” your life.

So...I encourage you to have fun finding turtles and when you do, try to hold on to what they symbolize.

Given their long lifespans (assuming that we curb our plastic pollution), turtles represent grounding, longevity, ancient wisdom, and good luck.

Some of my members have already shared their turtles with me, from a plastic sea turtle in Brooklyn to a turtle flower pot in Virginia.

It all works.

As long as seeing one reminds you to hold onto your own sense of grounding, longevity, wisdom and luck.

With fierce love,
Alison