New Year, New Name

The Mind of Gabriela will now be called Mama's Shoe.

2 years ago I sent out my first newsletter. Since then, I have undergone immense physical and spiritual transformation, and it felt natural to reflect these changes here. The Mind of Gabriela will now be called Mama's Shoe.

Even though I will continue writing about whatever is on my mind, I am most successful when I write from the heart rather than the brain. My soul is very much still inside my mama’s closet, so I can’t help but write about the yearning to find things I love as much as her shoes.

Here’s what to expect in your inbox:

👟 Sustainable Fashion

The meat and potatoes are, and will always be, clothes and sustainable living. Upcycling, mending, gifting, responsible shopping and thrifting. The fabrics and materials that we put on our bodies communicate deep emotions. I am lucky enough to have acute fashion antennae, so this is what I report on.

It’s the bonnet you kept for your son, the sock I mended. It’s building your personal style by re-wearing the same shirt over and over and over again. Spoon necklaces! Tearing up from loving so much what you already own. Clothes are made of materials that will most likely outlive us, so instead of clutter, we might as well make it intentional, and intergenerational. Pass it on. Keep your mother’s fur. Loved clothes last longer.

👠 But Make it Fun

I reaffirm my commitment to sharing honest trade-offs and being as sustainable as possible without going cuckoo. I gag at the preachers: boycotters, nevers, and always. We all know what a sustainable thing to do, but we constantly ignore it, like the broccoli on the back of my refrigerator.

Once in a while, I break that rut, trying out impulsively delicious reducing, reusing, and recycling projects. Change only happens when put into practice with excitement and joy.

👡 Motherhood

I am a new mom dedicated to changing the world, even though I can barely find time to shower. My motherly instinct is to take care of the breastmilk, the plants, the turtles, the bees, the cows, the libraries, the seamstresses, the hostages, the survivors, and even the tiny dolls forgotten in the dumps of Goodwill.

I’ll write more about motherhood and the existential reflections on being a woman and raising one, in the early, conflicting, twenty-first century. The weight of the world is ever more present. Reality’s shoes are just too big to fill. Instead of feeling guilty and overwhelmed, I lean on the memory of when I was a kid, excited to try pairs too big for my feet, knowing that one day, I’ll grow to fit ‘em just right.

🥿 🥿 🥿 🥿 🥿 🥿 🥿

And this is why…. Mama’s Shoe.

I’m Cher Horowitz meet David Attenborough. It’s the tension between looking great and saving the world. Superficiality and philosophy. Who we are and who we want to be. What’s humanly possible as a parent, as a human?

The newsletter was started by the sensitive child I never outgrew, seeking the solace of my mother’s womb. Rewearing her clothes, and shopping in her closet, is as close as I’ll get to this feeling. Thank you for joining in.

Love,

Gabriela