“Feelings are for the living. Let them wash over you, and then let them carry you forward.”— Alex Elle

It’s hard to put into words how incredible it felt to witness the outpouring of support at Napa’s “NO KINGS” protest.

To see so many people show up — in our small town, on a sunny afternoon, fueled by purpose and love — brought tears to my eyes. Not from sadness, but from something else. Something deeper.

What struck me was this: the emotion didn’t begin at the rally.

It started long before.

The tightness in the chest, the breath that catches. The lump in your throat when you're making signs, choosing your protest outfit, even just thinking about showing up.

That emotion? It’s the accumulation of everything —The injustice, the fear, the hope, the love. We feel the weight of the world, and the beauty of standing up with our community.

When we gather like that, our nervous systems instinctively recognize something powerful: We are not alone.

We feel it in our bodies — the gravity of what we’re doing — even before our minds can make sense of it. That’s why it hits us so hard — we’ve been holding so much, for so long.

And sometimes, it’s only in the presence of others — when it finally feels safe — that our minds let go, and our hearts say: Feel it, now.

So, if you cried before the rally, during the chants, or hours afterward? You’re not broken. You’re beautifully, radically human.

And if you're learning how to sit with those feelings — the shaky ones, the overwhelming ones, the full-to-the-brim-with-meaning ones — you're not alone there, either.

Give yourself permission to feel it all. To sit with your feelings.To find healing in community and introspection.

That’s what solidarity feels like.

That’s what love looks like in action.

With gratitude,

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