Everything is Connected
On Fascia & Fascism
A grapefruit is an amazing thing. Not only does it have beautiful pink-orange sweet-sour flesh and satisfying size and weight, it has a genius design. Peel back the rind and find segments separated into nice two-bite portions (or one, if you’re my husband). Inside those segments are pulp pockets full of juice.
Both the pulp pockets and the segments are formed with thin, strong membranes that literally hold the whole thing together.
Your body has the same type of structure within it: a complete system of thin, strong, flexible membrane called fascia. Everything in your body -- your muscles, organs, tendons, ligaments, nerves, ev.er.y.thing – is wrapped in fascia. You are like a big beautiful grapefruit with all your parts snugged together and deeply interconnected. (I wrote about fascia before in the essay Muscle Moves and Fascia Connects on Oct 30 2025.)
Late last year, my movement and activist friend Candice offered a deep stretch practice focused on fascia. I make time for this 90-minute class recorded class every week (you can find it here: she generously has opened it to everybody until April 16, 2026). The holds are sustained, and can be intense (or as Candice says, “Spicy!”) to allow the fascial tissues to release and take a new, more easeful shape. This is not sleepy, restful yoga nidra, y’all (which I also love). This is a deep, rich mole sauce with extra chipotle. When I’m done, my breath is fuller and more even, my body feels spacious and open, and my nervous system has downshifted into resourcefulness.
Many of the stretches in this deep fascia practice are spirals and twists. These movements correspond to the design of the body and allow access to the long sheathes of fascia. In one, I’m on my back with a knee bent, twisting across my other leg. My arm reaches back on an angle away from my knee. My sweet friend instructs, “Now flex your hand as it reaches out…” and *shazam* the entire diagonal line of my body lights up. From my fingertips, across my arm and shoulder, through my side ribs and along the outside of my leg.
Everything is connected. I can feel it. Sometimes I forget. But everything, everything is connected to everything else.
For nearly a year, our grassroots organization Keep Going Together has been speaking at the Charlottesville City Council and the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meetings asking for courageous leadership around ICE enforcement actions. Twice a month, for eleven months, we – led by the steady and stalwart former attorney, Alicia Lenahan – have been showing up and telling our electeds that we want them to protect us from federal overreach.
Many times, there are few of us in those chambers. When we get up to speak, our words echo hollowly against mostly empty seats. Often those on the dais don’t make eye contact. We ask for clarity. We ask for transparency. We ask for commitment.
Mostly we get silence.
And then, earlier this year, both the City and the County issued statements confirming their commitment to civil rights and protection of residents. It was progress, yes, and it felt like a small dish of weak sauce.
Driving home in the dark after one of those meetings, I sighed and wondered what the point of it all was.
This week, though, I felt the aliveness of the flexed-hand stretch. This week, Alicia spoke on the historical precedents in our city of siding with white nationalists and racists. I pointed out the troubling connections between ICE and police officers in schools. Others spoke about the lack of affordable housing and of the destruction of Black neighborhoods. Still others talked about the importance of public art to integrate and individuate our community.
The room was full – a wide assortment of ages and colors and accents and classes. Nearly every time someone began to speak, the crowd rose to its feet in solidarity. Not just about the particular issue they came for. We could see the connections. ICE and policing and housing and public art and racism are all connected. And we could feel it.
When public comment was over, most of us poured into the hallway together. One of the eloquent and persistent speakers about neighborhood integrity, racism and classism, shouted affirmation to Alicia and wrapped her in a hug. She saw me and we reached hands toward each other.
“We did good together tonight,” she said. “Let’s keep going.”
Everything is connected. We can feel it. Sometimes we forget. But everything, everything, everything is connected to everything else.
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WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT KEEP GOING TOGETHER?
Learn more about our grassroots pro-democracy organization and get involved! Sign up for our events listing, our Facebook group and more at our web site!
CURRENT HAPPENINGS
The crisis of hunger in our community is a main focus for KGT this year.
The Grocery Card Campaign ~ We are excited to launch this new collaborative campaign!
This collaborative campaign* is designed to offer emergency assistance to immigrant families and it’s simple for both individuals (and groups like churches, book clubs, teams, neighborhood associations, knitting circles, your peeps!) to participate:
(1) Purchase $25 Gift Cards from Walmart, Kroger or Food Lion.
(2) Send an email to grocerycardcampaign@gmail.com to arrange delivery of the cards. Our trusted delivery team will get your card to the families needing food help.
You can also use that email for questions or ideas for spreading the word! Thank you!
*In collaboration with Sin Barreras, Indivisible Charlottesville, Legal Aid Justice Center & the Central Virginia Community Support Fund
KGT Food Drive for the Charlottesville High School Food Pantry
The Charlottesville High School Pantry’s supplies are dwindling for students and their families. Let’s help restock their shelves! You can be part of the drive by dropping off items from their wish list or by having items delivered directly to CHS!
Drop off Mondays, 1030am-12noon at Jazzercise Mar 16-Apr 13
OR Direct Delivery to CHS!
Use the QR Codes or go here for links and details! Thank you for helping KGT ease the suffering of hunger in our community.
OFFERINGS FROM SUSAN
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR TWO SPRING NOURISHING MOVEMENT SERIES!
Join us for one more week in the March/April series (April 13) and then another 5-week spring series in April/May (Apr 27-May 25)! We’ll take a summer break in June so jump in this spring so we can move together!
You can register for in-person classes — including single class drop-ins for March/April — at the button below.
Ev.er.y.thing xxx
Thank you for all the showing up you do to make those connections visible!