SproutMojo

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06VY9NWVZ

SproutMojo Co-Creator

Elaine Heffner

Wishing you the happiest of Mother's Days from SproutMojo ... we hope you are feeling loved! #mothersday #socksformum #wearaphilosophy #socktonic

Approaching that hallowed day - Mother’s Day - I am wondering if motherhood has always been such a complex weave in our social fabric? It seems so conflicted – on the one hand elevated above all other roles on the planet and simultaneously picked apart, over-examined, judged and debated. At this point in life, as the mother of three, I feel like I’ve had a reasonable immersion in the whole thing – from struggling to become a mother in the first place, the shock of the reality of actually having a child … and then two more… parenting everyday for a decade, staying home, going to work, juggling the wants and needs of what can feel like a million people, laughing at their antics, feeling overwhelmed with pride and love one moment, quickly followed by waves of anxiety, self-doubt or pure frustration…. Yep, it’s been full on. And yet, that is only my one small life and my short, narrow experience of it. The reality is there are a billion different versions of mothering and motherhood out there. There are countless ways in which women have both enjoyed and endured the privilege and the pain that is having a child. One thing every mothering story has in common is the impossibility of it being perfect (even the best of of the best will have given their kids a couple of sessions worth of material for their therapist in the future!). Luckily, while there is no way to be a perfect mother, there are many ways to be a good one. And those ways – being authentic, kind and generous; connecting with compassion and openness; judging less and listening more; being present; finding humor; weathering disappointments side by side, and a million other small investments of ourselves – are not the exclusive domain of mothers. They are available to us all – those who’ve lost a mother, those who’ve lost a child, those glorious earth mother types, those dads who are doing both jobs, those whose mothering dreams are unfulfilled and those whose expectations have been tipped upside down. At the end of the day, mothers are people and people have amazing capacity to love, connect and change another person’s world. Without doubt the mother-child connection can be an incredible and powerful thing, that transcends distance and imprints on hearts - it is something worth celebrating. So, this Mother’s Day, if you are one or if you have one in your life, make her (or yourself) feel the love. And if you aren’t, or you don’t, why not celebrate another connection that gives you comfort and a sense of coming home. And, of course, nothing says home like a comfy pair of outstandingly fun socks 😉! But mostly, embrace the day and share some joy! Gratefully yours, Thane SproutMojo Co-Creator

- SproutMojo

“You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. “ Christopher Robin https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Sock-Tonic-Sayings-Adventure/dp/B06W5HQ8TD/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522796560&sr=8-1&keywords=sock+tonic&dpID=41PDwnFYP2L&preST=_SY445_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

It's that time of year again, chocolate in every conceivable form is flying off the shelves and most of us seem caught somewhere between panic and confusion that it is pretty much April already. Religious or not, Easter, has become a cultural norm in the Western world, and it’s this point in the calendar where we can consider what value it might add to our lives. Whether you engage with the background story or not, the essence is for the most part about renewal – new life – and hope for the future. Which seems like something worth grabbing with both hands. In this, the month of March 2018, you could be forgiven for looking at the headlines and thinking there’s not so much to feel hopeful about; not a lot to look forward to in a world that seems constantly on the brink of disaster, be it natural or man-made. On personal levels we are touched, sometimes slammed, by the chaos – a friend diagnosed with cancer, a colleague losing a child, a work contract that won’t be renewed; then we dare to glance at the news only to be horrified by the prospect of nuclear testing, power-crazed politicians and starving children. The 24-hour news cycle means there is little reprieve from sorrow and doom. But this is the precise moment in which we should pause. Be still. Collect ourselves. Because, in fact, in the big picture, things are better at this moment than ever before in the history of our little planet. True, poverty, sickness and conflicts continue, but also true - our progress as humankind is nothing short of phenomenal. In his recent book, Enlightenment Now, Steven Pinker writes an amazing defense for the heroic leaps and bounds taken by humanity, which we often take for granted. In many places in the world, peace and prosperity are growing: babies can expect to live for eight or more decades, medications can cure us and relieve our pain, food is available in excess, we touch a button and light appears or clean water flows, the world’s repository of knowledge is accessible in our pocket, and we are able to flourish. Of course, there is still great and tragic suffering, but ideas on how to reduce it are being voiced, and as Pinker writes, “an infinite number are yet to be conceived”. The world will never be perfect, but there is no limit to the progress we can make if we have the will to extend our knowledge and apply our compassion beyond our immediate circles. So, this is what we are concentrating on this Easter at SproutMojo. Not some wishy-washy ‘let’s all think happy thoughts and cross our fingers that tomorrow the sun continues to shine’, but some genuine acknowledgement that there is a lot of good happening out there, that we all have every reason to expect more good things to come and that it is in us all to be part of the progress. We can live safer, learn more and contribute better than ever before. We might be doing it a bit different to you – we get it, not everyone is into quirky, mismatched socks that give the wearer a little reminder of how awesome they can be -but the world needs a bit of everything to keep turning. If you have some quiet time over the holidays, we hope that you can remind yourself and be proud of what you are adding to the story. Gratefully yours, Thane SproutMojo Co-Creator

February 11, 2018 I find the 14th of February to be a surprisingly divisive date, creating two distinct camps: those who relish the romance and those who feel mild disdain. Having entered the world of the commercial product, I’m not really in the position to disparage Valentine’s Day, with all it’s sentimental trimmings and wildly expensive single roses. Part of me doesn’t want to anyway – why not celebrate love? Doesn’t the world need more of that? However, I can’t help thinking how many layers we are missing out on here, and how many people, on the 14th of February, will feel their love life is lacking in comparison to their Facebook friends or their Instagram feed. Real love is essentially a true and meaningful connection with others, and loving and being loved is the most grounding and cocooning sensation amid the whirlwind of life. If you happen to have that in a version complete with breath-taking kisses and stomach tickling butterflies … beautiful! Enjoy every moment of it. If you aren’t quite in that space though, don’t write yourself off for Valentine’s Day. So much of love is in the many small efforts, made each day and repeated. It is often slightly mundane and pretty simple – no grand gestures or moonlit serenades – but it can be relied on and allows both the giver and receiver security to be themselves, flaws and all. Our romantic and passionate connections bring colour and vitality and joy to life, but they are by no means the only connections worth celebrating. Whether you are feeling lucky in love or not, it’s worth looking beyond the conventional and obvious this Valentine’s to think about who else we might want to celebrate connection with – those friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors that really know us, support us, laugh and cry with us and have our backs. There’s a whole lot of love out there, it just isn’t always in a Hallmark card! Of course, while you’re thinking about them, you can always show them (or yourself) a little extra love with a pair of the perfect pick-me-up Sock Tonic socks 😊. There’s a message that’s right for everyone, and more are on their way – watch this space! Happy Valentine’s Day! Gratefully yours, Thane SproutMojo Co-Creator

This holiday season my children, husband and I had the opportunity to travel to be with extended family. Their home is not only distant in terms of miles, time zones and flying hours, it is culturally, economically, and socially in another world compared to our day-to-day home life. It’s the kind of place where the divide been those who have and those who don’t is striking and impossible to ignore. Being here stirs up a mixture of feelings and conflicts - especially for my children, who are startled by the difficulties visible in people’s experience and poised to immediately attempt to fix it, which, let’s face it, is how we all should feel. It makes you reevaluate all the frantic tasks of the Christmas rush (‘I have to shop for so-and-so’, I have to order the turkey’, I have to send those cards, find that perfect gift, decorate the tree’, etc, etc) and see them for what they are - I get to buy those gifts, I get to prepare that meal, and in my case, at the end of the holiday I get to go home. This is not a message aimed at telling anyone how to approach the Christmas season, or how to feel about what you do or don’t have, but simply to say that from the SproutMojo team (all two of us!), we hope that wherever you are, you find some peace and joy in the holiday season and if you have the opportunity to give, that it is a gift that returns to you many times over. We have been greatly privileged in 2017 to be able to start our small venture and we feel so thankful for the support of our family and friends, the enthusiasm of those around us in celebrating our beginnings and the excitement of sharing what we are doing with our first customers. The gift of my holiday experience this year is that I am looking forward to 2018 with SproutMojo and its positive possibilities more than ever, especially the prospect of using this platform to pay it forward to the best of our ability. If you want to participate, or even observe, we are grateful and excited to have you on board! So that’s a wrap for 2017, and we send you our warmest best wishes for your holidays and the fresh start on the horizon for 2018. Gratefully yours, Thane SproutMojo Co-Creator

November 13, 2017 “If the only prayer you said was thank you that would be enough.” Meister Eckhart The science is in and it’s good news. Instilling a practice of gratitude into your daily life is possibly one of the simplest (and cheapest!) ways to harness a whole range of benefits. It can have a positive impact on everything from relationships to quality of sleep, self-esteem to longevity, and emotional resilience to lowering your blood pressure. As a psychotherapist and art therapist, I don’t always practice what I preach (do as I say, not as I do?), but in this area I can honestly say I try to live it and it works. Here are 5 practices I try to do regularly that are simple ways to apply a gratitude tonic to every day, not just Thanksgiving. 1. Notice and remember: The things that we focus on from one moment to the next – what catches and keeps our attention – have the greatest impact on our view of ourselves and our place in the world. You can think of gratitude as the heart’s way of focusing and remembering. The more you pay attention to the good things – the small wins, the simple pleasures – the better you feel. Try this simple exercise and see if it makes a difference to how you feel. Try this: Gratitude jar: on a small piece of paper, write down one good thing that happened, or one thing you were grateful for today, and put it into a jar. Do it every day, if you can. Then decide how often you want to go fishing in your jar and have the pleasure of reflecting – once a week, once a month, once a year, or whenever you are feeling low? If you start now, by Thanksgiving next year your jar will be overflowing with beautiful reminders. 2. Be present: Be present in what you are doing. Be aware of yourself in your surroundings. Notice the trees moving in the breeze. Concentrate on your child and what they are saying. Put your phone down and feel the sunshine on your skin. Do one thing with focus, and then take a breath and be still for a moment before you move on to the next task. Practicing simple mindfulness allows you time to see the smaller detail, and when you do, feeling thankful is a natural by-product. Try this: Create a ritual: Try creating a simple, two-minute ritual of slowing down and breathing deeply and noticing what’s around you, and practice it several times a day. You could even set a reminder on your phone, if you need to! And think on this: “The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth, dwelling deeply in the present moment and feeling truly alive.” Thich Nhat Hanh 3. Tell about it: Gratitude increases exponentially when you share it. Letting the people around you know that you appreciate them, that you have noticed what they are doing and it has meaning to you, not only makes you feel good, it makes them feel good and it builds better relationships. Whether it’s your colleague at work, your partner, a friend, a random person on the street who paused and allowed you to go first, let them know you noticed them and you appreciate them. So simple yet so effective. Try this: Write a gratitude letter: Take 10 minutes to sit down and think about something someone has done for you – it doesn’t matter how long ago, how simple or grand a gesture, just something you are genuinely grateful for. Write them a letter expressing how it made you feel and what effect it had on your life. Do your best to send it to them – whether you hand deliver, mail, email, even text, the research shows it will improve your emotional well-being. In fact, scientists have found that even if you don’t send it you’ll still receive benefits in both mind and body. So there really is no reason not to try it. 4. Don’t compare: One piece of wisdom I have tried to drum into my children is the simple fact that comparison is the thief of joy. If you are forever noticing what other people are doing, measuring your own (possibly hum-drum) day against the highlights reel playing on Facebook or elsewhere, trying to keep a step ahead or get a rung higher on the ladder, you are headed on a path certain to lead to unhappiness. Real fulfilment, genuine satisfaction, comes from running your own race, and energy spent comparing is energy wasted. Try this: Start and end your day grateful: First thing in the morning, make a conscious choice to notice something good and take a moment to savor it. Before you go to sleep, think about something good that happened in the day and just sit with that thought for a minute. Tomorrow, and the next day, and the next: repeat. Make this a habit (put a post-it up to remind you to begin?) and see if you notice feeling any different – it’s been proven to improve emotional resilience. All of the above is free, easy and completely within your grasp, so the final point is: don’t wait. The sooner you start the sooner you’ll be feeling the benefits. It’s why we decided to make a pair of socks about it, because it’s the simply application (like putting on a pair of socks!) of gratitude that can point your feet in a positive direction for the day. You can check out our “I am thankful for, [Insert text]” socks here: https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Sock-Tonic-SproutMojo-thankful/dp/B06X1FW4ZG/ And happy Thanksgiving! Gratefully yours, Thane SproutMojo Co-Creator P.S. There is an enormous amount of research available regarding the effect of gratitude, and if you are interested in reading further, here are some links you might find useful: https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/benefits-gratitude-research-questions/ https://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/gratitude_letter# https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier