I’ve been reading Jenny Odell’s “How to Do Nothing,” a bedside sidekick to one of today’s most relevant and necessary questions. Relevant because we’re now distracted more than ever. And necessary because most of us don’t actually know how to turn off.

Odell helps us remember what’s easy to forget: that you deserve to rest. It’s shockingly simple but finding intentional ways to do less often gives you the gift of more. This was the seed that sparked the creation of the botanical body lotion Moon, an aromatherapeutic blend and a tool for slowing down by 3rd Ritual. This is also the part where I should tell you that I am part of the mindful collective that is 3rd Ritual, which is to say that I am far from unbiased. Yet, working with Moon has helped me re-access the kind of much-needed rest Odell is referring to. 

Moon harnesses the senses — through scent, color, and texture — she knocks me into an awareness of my body. I am here. I am slowing down. I am turning off.  

I live in Los Angeles where there is this looming sense of responsibility to make the most of the weather. To use your outdoor voices (sorry, had to). To do. But, the moon, this cooling yin to the sun’s fiery yang, helps invite introspection. For a moment, I have a kind of permission to be still. So whether you transition to stillness after a physical practice or amid your bedtime routine, I invite you to use Moon as a gateway. Between effort and grace, giving and receiving, doing and not doing. I think you, like me, might just find an answer to Odell’s question. 

With a voracious appetite for all things hidden, writer Glenn Mendonsa would gladly spend the majority of her time in research mode. She does this mostly as a content wrangler and idea generator at LUCCA studio by day, and more of this outside of work, for fun. Of recent intrigue: solfeggio frequencies, pedagogies for play, + pranayama breath techniques (courtesy of 3rd Ritual). 

Moon Botanical Body Lotion is available for purchase here.

I am here. I am slowing down. I am turning off.