The First-Ever Monday Mushroom
Our New Weekly Society Dispatch
Hello Friends & Foragers!
Grab a cuppa, The Monday 🍄 Mushroom has arrived. I’ve been playing with different options behind the scenes to keep things whimsical, informative, and full of delight without overloading your inboxes. Because inbox overwhelm is real 👀.
Thank you so much for your incredible patience with me as we figure out our rhythms and routines. Instead of giving you field notes on Fridays and something else on Mondays I’m rolling everything into one update that I hope brings you joy as you enter your week and helps you feel connected to all the goings-on.
This week we’ll unpack what to expect and how you can get involved with helping turn this newsletter into something that would rival The Pickwick Portfolio and make even Jo March herself proud.1
Without further ado, let’s get started!
The Monday Mushroom follows our four society cloverpoints: Make, Explore, Gather, and Grow. You’ll see these crop up clover and over again. (Pun totally intended.🍀 ) They are our four simple guideposts that help us move off our screens and toward shared tables, creative play, and real-world connection.
Things we’re making or creating.
It has been a busy week here at the clubhouse. You may have heard me say we are building the plane while flying the plane. And I love it! As we get our basics pinned down and settle into our more normal rhythms, I am so looking forward to just getting a chance to hang out here with you and get to know you more. I’m working my way through comments and chats as I’m able.
And there are so many exciting things on the horizon. I applied Friday for a possible project grant. It’s a long shot, but then this didn’t exist one month ago!
Here’s a photo of our first celebration badge. 🎉 I Did It Scared for when you want to celebrate doing something or taking the next step when you were still scared.
I’m working on our Make Your Own Badge Field Guide that explains exactly how to make a celebration badge. And you don’t need to be an artist. Plus each individual badge that I design comes with its own printable digital Badge Sketchbook that includes a traceable design for the badge, space to reflect on the moment the badge celebrates and some additional journal starter prompts. That’s coming in about a week.
Maker’s Corner: Lea’s Story Sash
Lea (who I can’t wait to introduce to you formally very soon) sent me these photos of her creating her story sash. She even trimmed it out with gorgeous tartan fabric.
The story sash (vest, jacket, or whatever works best for you) is the part of our ramblewear where we put our celebration badges. We don’t have an official uniform. Wear what makes you feel comfortable and then add a story sash with your handmade badges and a mushroom beret. Or simply come as you are.
Things we’re exploring or curious about.
I’ve had quite a few questions on why the mushroom is our emblem. Mushrooms are fascinating. They create remarkable underground networks that help forests communicate and thrive.
We love the reminder that connection often happens beneath the surface.
As an added bonus, a group of mushrooms growing together in an immediate area is called a troop. I kid you not. That’s the actual botanical term.
The funniest thing, personally, was walking around my house and studio and suddenly seeing mushroom motifs everywhere. Apparently I liked them before I realized I liked them. 🤣
The mushroom reminds us that often the most meaningful things we build together are rooted beneath the surface. It’s in the million unseen connections and moments of kindness that community is cultivated.
Things we’re celebrating together.
I cannot wait to fill this section up with your troop photos and stories, to celebrate you here, as well as share the latest about the ways we gather. It is such an honor to serve you. Here’s what I’m working on for you this week.
Creating this newsletter and getting it sent to you. ✅
Our First Meeting field guide for one of your first few meetings. Starting in September we’ll be on a schedule creating a monthly field guide for meetings to take the stress and guess work out of things. A big goal here is to make gathering easy and delightful. But these field guides for meetings are resources. Pick and choose what makes sense for you.
Building a database so y’all can find one another. There are many options and moving parts, so I’m figuring those out.
In case you missed it, here is our How to Start a Troop field guide to help you get started as a troop host if that is of interest. I’m also working on a simple way for you to submit photos and stories for your troops and the thing you have made.
Things we’re reflecting on.
I want to take this final section to thank YOU.
You are the hero of this story. None of this would be here without you trusting a stranger on the internet with a wild idea. How far we have come in a month is mindblowing. And it’s because we are building this together.
We'd love to see what you're making and how your troop is growing. If you have a handmade project you or your troop created, or a story, milestone, or meaningful moment from your troop that you'd like us to consider for a future Monday Mushroom, just reply to this email. A dedicated submission page is coming soon.
All my love,
If you aren’t familiar, The Pickwick Portfolio was an imaginary family newspaper created by the March sisters in Little Women. It was whimsy personified and I will never forget the image of them in their attic pretending to be a distinguished press club reading their submissions out loud.
Maybe we need a troop that meets over Zoom, for those of us who are far from others (or cannot go out).
The format could be:
meet (with a cup of coffee/tea/water/whatever) and talk a little (how are you, what are you making/working on) and then everyone leaves Zoom on and crafts their own things,
then meets back for a little break (how is it going?) ,
all craft some more,
meet back up and show what you did.
Is there a way to do this solo? A guide? I joined substack just for you and am trying to figure it out. I feel so old. Lmal