“Once I get out of the water, for me the race is over.” Michael Weintraub experienced years of panic attacks when he swam in triathlons, but the people he met in the community kept him coming back. Today we talk about breath, the ways the Universe keeps us learning, and Mike’s business as a certified chi run/walk instructor.

The trait of persistence or “stick-to-itiveness” is something that fascinates me; Michael is a great case study. He says he wasn’t particularly well-behaved as a child, but he learned over time that his high level of effort as an athlete and his ability to stand up for his classmates made him stand out.

Mike opens up in this conversation about his latest learning curve: caregiving for his wife in her journey with late stage frontotemporal dementia, a rare type of dementia. Some health care providers are now learning from him. How is it that some people move through intense physical demands and complex grief with a smile on their face?

Mike alludes to his spiritual strength when he touches on the centrality of the Olam Chesed Yibaneh, a Hebrew prayer that translates to “I will build this world with kindness.” The YouTube link offered above is a beautiful version recorded by Rabbi Marc Philippe with an intergenerational congregation.

Michael offers workshops and training out of his studio Tri Chi Walk & Run in Brookline, Massachusetts. He and I will meet up in person soon: if you’re in our area keep an eye out here or on our social media accounts for future adventures! Find Mike’s Instagram here.

Next week we’ll be live and making/mending art together 12:00-1:00 PM ET! You’re invited to make space in your day for creativity as a form of community healing.

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Few humans bring me to my ground of being the way Linda does. Her work as herbalist, aromatherapist, and community organizer are rooted in the soil of Haverhill, Massachusetts, where her business Wildflower Haven Apothecary flourishes from her garden.

Linda’s embodied wisdom is equalled only by her humor, so we laugh often as we talk plant medicine, the importance of friends who challenge us, and divine femininity.

Check out Linda & husband James’ website for some of New England’s most beautiful local gifts and art. You can contact Linda directly about her offerings by emailing [email protected].

Linda Sanchez and I share a love of Naomi Shihab Nye. Her poem Famous is worth a sliver of your time. Dare to linger, courageous friends.

Monday Morning Muse thrives because you offer your time & attention. Thank you!

My next Substack Live will be Monday, September 28th, 12:00-1:00 ET. We’ll dive together into questions of creative flourishing within community: what protects and empowers us as individuals? How do we offer ourselves within our immediate communities and beyond? I hope you’ll consider joining the conversation!

Maria Montessori was born August 31, 1870: happy birthday, incredible human! Today we celebrate Maria’s legacy with a conversation between four women who commit themselves to peace building and community connection. Each of us “follow the child” within while learning from the children we encounter in our world.

Cecelia Fabian is from El Salvador, grew up in Los Angeles, and lives/designs/makes daily beauty in Brooklyn. Cecelia has longstanding collaborations with Montessori teachers through fashion design, theater, modern dance, and community building. Be sure to check out Cecelia ChilaforFun’s unique designs and content via her Linktree!

Stacie Grasso has been a Montessori educator since 2009 and owns/runs Amesbury Montessori School in Amesbury, Massachusetts.

Mia Grasso, Stacie’s daughter, is an artist, model, and sales associate who graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 2025. I got to know the Grasso family at Stoneridge Children’s Montessori School from 2008-2013.

Listen in and learn more about Maria and how her example continues to speak volumes in our time. For a great read on the life of Montessori, we recommend E.G. Slade’s award-winning historical fiction Momentum: Montessori, A Life in Motion. You can learn more about the author’s non-profit Public Montessori in Action at their website.

Monday Morning Muse depends on those who listen, linger, and share. Thank you.

For a fun bonus, here’s Mia’s brother Michael in a 14 year old YouTube video teaching the song The More We Get Together.

My day often starts with SoulCollage® and qi gong. Each human finds their own routines & rituals at different seasons.

These days I’m semi-obsessed with the Reality Check theme Bryar & Von’Erik prompted in June. I regularly ask friends, acquaintances, and strangers “What do you wish you’d learned in school but learned from life instead?”

Today I share a journal entry from 14-year-old me. My complaints about Chemistry homework led to a great question: “Where will I learn to discover?”

Next week we’ll share conversation on the work and methodology of the brilliant educator and researcher Maria Montessori, whose exhortation to “Follow the child” has transformed countless lives.

I am curious how the spirit of Montessori’s work applies to adults committed to learning over the course of our lives. In this episode I offer a prompt to get creative juices flowing:

Imagine yourself as a center point with concentric circles around you. Who/what is in the circle closest to you? How many circles might you draw?

We’ll come back to this prompt around the time of the September 22nd Equinox. Here in Massachusetts, most humans I witness are in a tumbling transitional energy. If you listen today, thank you … breathe and trust the path to unfold under your feet.

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Wanted: 1 skillful/soulful trombone player to collab on a song for the vibe curator featured in today’s episode. Sixteen years bus driving for the MBTA, and Kecia Barnes is the opposite of a Masshole.

How does she radiate love amidst the fumes of others’ impatience and the vicissitudes of rush-hour?

Kecia and I met at 1 More Rep Athletics, and she hosted me for this conversation in her Roxbury home.

Kecia sounds off on our “Reality Check” theme with wisdom for world travelers & couch surfers. I bet you’ll want to join her on a bus route after laughing through this episode.

In a world that needs more kindness, remember that you are your own experience. We could all borrow a page or two from Kecia’s playbook.

Monday Morning Muse takes time, which some equate with money. I don’t but still need it. Thanks for considering a subscription!

The 44.4 Collaborative - aka Team44point4 - has marvelous new merch by emilindaart & Hannah is cycling in the American Diabetes Association®’s Ride for the Cure this Sunday: donations accepted till September 15. More on our evolving Patreon page!

The American Diabetes Association® lucked out when Tim Wilson joined its Ride for the Cure team in 1994. I’ll be doing the ride in Lexington for the first time this coming Sunday, August 16th! Talking with Tim pumped me up: we share a love of cycling as well as a passion to see people understand and support those living with diabetes.

Important details about Ride for the Cure 2026:

* Folks can participate from anywhere in the world. If you’re interested in joining with us, check out this link. Team44point4 has some fun new merch by emilindaart. More about that on our evolving Patreon page!

* If you sign up, you can choose to attempt 5 miles, 15 miles, 31 miles, 62 miles, or 100 miles. I’m attempting the 15 miles this year and learned that this group will start riding at 10 AM.

* Assemble your own team or learn more about the event at this website.

I hope Tim’s insights on community and connection will inspire you to donate, ride, or show up more fully for someone in your life who lives with diabetes. Next Sunday I’ll be asking Tim which role he played in Godspell and we’ll raise a glass to Mr. Scanlon, his high school English/theater teacher. I hope you’ll listen to the episode to understand why!

Thanks for showing up…think about sharing!

Monday Morning Muse takes time, which some people equate with money. I don’t, but I still need it to survive. Think about subscribing!

Special note: I’ll be riding on Sunday with my friend Phil Dwyer at the forefront of my mind. Phil and his wife Emma are hoping to get out of medical debt related to his diabetes before their daughter is born this autumn. If you’d like to learn more about Phil’s gofundme, check out this QR code:

Today I start and end with snippets of “If the World Just Danced,” a song recorded by Diana Ross in 2021.

Yesterday I felt grateful to help lead Zumba® at Open Streets in Jamaica Plain then witness my former student Liz Lister teach Bachata by the River in Cambridge. While some people exude particular elegance in dancing, I believe everyone can learn within community movement spaces that embody joy while teaching consensual, safe touch.

Three weeks ago Von’Erik dropped the title “Reality Check” to describe what we wish more people learned before graduating high school. Since then, I’ve been taking notes on themes that emerge in coffee shops, social spaces, and with guests here. Please comment on this episode! What do you wish we all learned before completing high school and/or turned eighteen?

Find here the link to an evolving google doc that offers my 2026 schedule for Monday Morning Muse. Request access or DM me if you’d like to be featured in an upcoming episode! I’m excited about the line-up as well as the Voice Reclamation work that I’m focusing on this summer on my YouTube channel - you can find my full channel by looking up “hannahlynnmell” on YouTube.

I’m assembling a team for the Sunday August 16th New England Tour de Cure, organized by the American Diabetes Association®. Folks can participate from anywhere in the world. If you’re interested in joining with us, check out this link. Finally, here’s an evolving Patreon page for the 44.4 Collaborative. We’re @team44point4 on Instagram and can be contacted by emailing [email protected]. This year’s logo was created by emilindaart. Over time, we’ll offer opportunities to partner with a variety of artists!

Worth noting that I’m postponing the SoulCollage Live I refer to in this video. Working through some logistics with Substack and payments right now.

Brief interlude from this summer’s education focus to explore a related theme: reclaiming creative energy.

I met Tom Scotto at Zumi’s coffee shop in Ipswich, Massachusetts this winter, where my bicycle helmet prompted a conversation about New England fortitude. Before either of us walked back into the frigid morning we’d become friends.

Today Tom offers practical advice for my first cycling event, the American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure on August 16th in Lexington, MA. Check out this link to join the 44.4 Collaborative’s team from anywhere in the world.

Tom trained at Berklee College of Music as a drummer. As we walk through a process I’m rebooting to guide clients in reclaiming creative energy, Tom describes his own mission to deconstruct unhealthy patriarchal patterns. We talk about balancing the dynamic energy unleashed in collaboration with rest and contemplation. Visit www.tomscotto.com to learn more about Tom’s consultation work as a technologist, operational strategist, and consultant.

The Voice Reclamation Google doc I’ve created is a free resource; please email [email protected] to learn more or hire me as a coach. The 44.4 Collaborative is getting rebooted to crowdsource specific creative projects, and we have merch designed by emilindaart almost ready for release. Please consider following us on Patreon. On Instagram we are @team44point4.

Thanks for offering your time & attention.

Emily Berolo is a dynamo artist, animator, and highly sensitive person whose musings on community, embodiment, and imagination delight me.

Emily talks in this episode about her process of design for the 44.4 Collaborative’s new logo. I am assembling a team for the Sunday August 16th New England Tour de Cure, organized by the American Diabetes Association®. Folks can participate from anywhere in the world, and I plan to post a video soon with one of the organizers! If you’re interested in joining with us, check out this link.

In addition to design talk, we add to the “Reality Check” curriculum started last week with Bryar Loftfield & Von’Erik Barren-Tucker. We agree on the importance of self-awareness and discuss it as essential for those who are empathic.

Find here the link to an evolving google doc that offers my 2026 schedule for Monday Morning Muse. Request access or DM me if you’d like to be featured in an upcoming episode.

Also, here’s an evolving Patreon page for the 44.4 Collaborative. We’re @team44point4 on Instagram and can be contacted by emailing [email protected]. Soon we’ll be sending out gifts & offering opportunities to partner with a variety of artists.

Thanks so much for showing up! Commenting or subscribing would mean a lot.