Reclaiming the Reins in the Runaway Year of the Horse
Savoring one last sweet celebration - my neighbor’s cat’s 15th birthday - before stepping into my next travel adventure to Europe.
I don’t know about you, but the intensity of 2026 feels wild, and unpredictable, much like the unbridled horse image that I kept picturing would be the energy of the “year of the fire horse,” which began Feb 17th.
But in reality, it has had very different physical manifestations than I anticipated - not quite the elegant mane flowing in the breeze with a clear sense of direction, but more like a horse that has been spooked and is running for its life, unsure if it will encounter a bramble patch at breakneck speed.
Since January 26th, each week has presented a new disruptive piece of news in my family, and just when I am wrapping my mind around one new development, a new one lands fresh and hot on the scene. I know that sounds dramatic, but when one quarter brings death, dementia, and divorce for loved ones, you take note.
Last year it felt like the geopolitical map was shifting under our feet every week, and it was hard to find solid footing, and not get caught in paralysis. And this year the geopolitical map continues to be equally disruptive, but my personal life seems to now be matching that pace.
Trading winter chill for ocean waves, we followed my brother to his favorite surf town in Costa Rica, Nosara, for a welcome January escape.
And how does that translate to the professional landscape, you might ask? I had the opportunity to go to a virtual workshop on the "Future of Philanthropy” hosted by the Institute for the Future recently, and a director of strategy at a major foundation raised the question, “how do you even begin to set a strategy within so much chaos and uncertainty?”
Participants expressed a common sentiment that they feel like victims of a rapidly arriving future, with little agency or creative power to shape what happens next. The book I have continued listening to focused on long-term thinking, called The Good Ancestor, shares a similar sentiment, with the gobsmacking language warning that “the future has already been colonized.” Talk about disempowering. So, do we just surrender and roll over, and let the future be defined for us?
Well, no. I would venture to say the year of the horse is right on time, helping us reclaim our power to shape our own lives, channel our gifts and depth of experience, and decide to trust our raw instincts, as we increasingly accept that the traditional rules often no longer apply. We are not going to find new approaches without some of us taking the lead to navigate the wilderness before us, and inviting a few other friends along for the ride.
Side trips to Nashville and Asheville became an opportunity to share my queen theme and explore each friend’s unique vision of their kingdom.
For me, this looks like honoring and appreciating the role I have gotten to play in supporting my family in a season of continued health set-backs for my parents, and the gift it offered me in connecting with a joy I did not know I would find in caretaking and tending to the immediate physical needs of those I cared about.
While also not falling into the common trap women find themselves in - losing ourselves in over-responsibility, accepting the role others deem us fit for, losing sight of our other dynamic parts, forgetting to ask “what role do I want to play?”
If anything, this season has rebuilt my confidence in seeing that I can balance tending to the needs of others, while still ensuring that I spend equal effort tending to my own light - through health routines, quality time with friends, getting lost in stories (books and movies), and a few small side adventures, here and there.
It also looks like claiming more fully my own story and heritage that I have often wanted to distance myself from, in an effort to find my own path and believe that I could consciously create my own destiny. Coming from privilege felt like a mantle I never knew how to quite carry, and I intentionally avoided social circles where lineage or wealth was highly valued or measured.
Caring for my mom after her pelvic fracture in February became an unexpected space to reflect together on contentment, dreams, and what it means to live with an open palm.
My trip to Europe also coincides with my vision to evolve my consulting into a collective advisory model, which I will be sharing more about as it takes shape in parallel with my current travel pursuits. This looks like moving away from short-term, project-based work with tangible deliverables, and stepping into my power to help leaders see a bigger landscape, past and present, inner and outer, global and local. I am more deeply accepting that my future is about supporting what is emergent with people I trust, respect, and have genuine affinity for. Fellow revolutionaries are welcome…
My Europe itinerary, as you might imagine, is a chance to re-connect with my dynamic parts, after being mostly stationary for over six months. Time in Switzerland to deepen my understanding of family offices/NextGen/philanthropy in Zurich, as well as the studying evolution of international development and humanitarianism in Geneva. Scooting down to Italy to realize a younger self's dream of Woofing (Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms) in Northern Italy, close to Lake Como, and learn about regenerative agriculture and indulge in my love of nature and mountains.
I finally made it out to witness grassroots activism in action, joining an Indivisible rally in response to the U.S. political intervention in Venezuela.
Zipping up to Oxford to tag along for festivities associated with the Skoll World Forum and the Marmalade Festival, listening to the global conversation about social innovation, and honoring my higher education nerd.
Meandering over to Berlin to reflect on revival and the conditions for creative rebirth. From there, I trust synchronicities will carry me to other stops on the continent - likely Netherlands, Portugal, and France to visit friends, but hopefully a final stop will include making my way up to Scotland to poke around the Edinburgh Futures Institute and the mystical nature of the highlands.
Right before my departure, I met Makenzie Darling, who specializes in movement and coalition building, and her key reflection was that the missing piece from leadership development is ancestral integration and healing. Feels like no accident this conversation took place, right before my departure for my next grand adventure…stay tuned!
