February can stir up a lot of things, especially as Valentine's Day approaches. Our society often tells us it's a big deal: buy this, buy that, prove your love, "are you loved?" And yet, many people I know are grieving, tender, or simply apathetic to the whole thing. For some, this season brings loneliness or loss, or just feels disconnected from what's real.
I'm feeling challenged to shift the frame a little, and I wonder if you'll join me? In the midst of being surrounded by reminders of "love," what if we used this moment as a gentle exercise? Could we think creatively about where our love goes—toward something that desperately needs it right now? Is it a neighbor? Is it ourselves? Is it a cause, a community or our planet?
For me, I keep coming back to nature. Again and again, I turn to the natural world for grounding, support, and rejuvenation. Nature steadies me without fail when the world feels overwhelming. And yet, Mother Earth herself is suffering. We take and take—resources, space, beauty—often without pausing to give back. Pollution is rampant. Species are disappearing. The imbalance is impossible to ignore.
So today, and in the spirit of this exercise, I think I feel a little love poem coming on:
I lean on the trees. They ask only that I pause, notice, protect, live.
(love a haiku!)
Where in your life do you feel that you've been taking and might feel called to give back? Sometimes that act of reciprocity becomes a balm not only for others, but for ourselves too. There's something almost magical about it—how care offered outward finds its way home.
I hope you'll join me in feeling curious about gently challenging what this season can look like. Can we donate our money instead of buying into consumerism? Can we share time with a friend in need? Or maybe it's simply spending time in nature and remembering we belong to something much larger than ourselves.
With Love,
Rachel Cao
Special Announcement!
Two members of our beloved teaching team have published a book! Jan Booth and Trish Rux have been guiding students through our courses and trainings since the Collective's inception (and long before). Their new book, Dying Matters: 8 Conversations That Can Change Your Life, grows directly from decades of hospice and palliative care experience and their deep commitment to honest, compassionate conversations about death and living well.
Dying Matters offers a practical, heart-centered framework for navigating essential end-of-life conversations with loved ones, patients, or community members. Through eight guided conversations, reflection prompts, and a built-in discussion guide, the book invites readers—whether healthy, living with illness, caregiving, or grieving—to explore what truly matters and to engage in the conversations that bring clarity, connection, and peace.
One of our grads, Pam Linn, is hosting a beautiful offering this month in Michigan. Turning Toward What Matters: A Retreat for Conscious Living & Dyingis a small, heart-centered weekend retreat hosted at Kairos Farm in Metamora, MI. Held in a quiet, restored barn, this nourishing two-day gathering invites participants to slow down, and gently explore how facing mortality can help us live more fully and intentionally. Through guided reflection, gentle movement, supportive group conversation, time with the land and animals, and nourishing meals, participants will explore what brings physical ease, emotional honesty, spiritual grounding, connection, and peace of mind.