<p>I didn’t feel called to offer a full end-of-year collective message this time. But I <em>was</em> sitting in my prayer closet this afternoon—after waking up late AF because I went to sleep at 6 a.m. adding more cards to our music oracle, now officially dubbed the <strong>Heart Strings Music Oracle</strong>.</p><p>In the prayer closet, I asked Spirit one simple question: what is the main thing we need to carry with us as we cross into 2026?</p><p>The cliff notes version: <strong>speaking from our hearts is our alchemy.</strong></p><p><p>Thanks for reading! This post is public so feel free to share it.</p></p><p>A lot of us have learned—especially over the last few years—that we’re supposed to protect our pride at all costs. Don’t let them think they got you. Don’t let them know it hurt. Don’t let them see you care, be nonchalant. Social media rewards composure, not truth. Performance, not feeling. But that kind of protection comes with a cost.</p><p><strong>Side thought:</strong> when did it become cool to not care? That’s weird.</p><p>What I kept hearing is that speaking from your heart is disarming. Because it requires you to come down off the ego, open your heart, and actually use your voice to say what you feel. Expose the softness underneath the shell instead of defending the armor.</p><p>I saw this play out in my own life recently. Someone expected anger from me. That would’ve been easier. Instead, I said I was disappointed. And disappointment is harder to say because it means you cared. It means something mattered. It means you felt it in your heart, not just your head.</p><p>That honesty changed the entire conversation. Not because it was strategic—but because it was true. And vulnerable.</p><p><p>This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.</p></p><p>As I mentioned in my birthday post this year, my external approval went down, but my internal approval went up. The people who were meant to stay, stayed. The rest didn’t. And I’m okay with that, because I’m no longer interested in protecting my pride at the expense of my truth.</p><p>As we move forward, we’re being asked to let the heart and the voice work together. To speak clearly. To speak honestly. To say the deeper thing underneath the surface.</p><p>Speak from your heart. That’s where the shift happens.</p><p>If you want to share in the comments, you don’t have to explain anything. You can just write <em>I release</em> or <em>I’m excited</em>. And if you want to share your full thoughts, I’m all ears.</p><p>xoxo,</p><p>Goddess Theadora</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://themediocreblackwoman.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">themediocreblackwoman.substack.com/subscribe</a>