"When I stop judging what my body wants to do and I stop repressing what my body wants to do and I let it just be free, I'm also letting my creativity be free... And so as an artist, as a writer, as a thinker, as a sensualist, I'm opening up more -- just possibility about how to engage with the world. And if my focus is pleasure, my body is the access point to pleasure. And then remember, my brain is a part of my body. So how do I stop repressing my brain, how do I stop repressing my body, how do I stop uglifying myself so that I can lean into, just, the luck of being alive in this moment. " -Vanessa Rochelle Lewis of Reclaim Ugly & Pleasureness Literary Academy
Vanessa Rochelle Lewis joined me virtually as a part of the COVID 19 LIVE Roc program on March 15th. We talked about her work on how the concept of "ugly" affects our lives and health outcomes, especially during the current pandemic. This convo. goes deep and features storytelling, tantra, queering and poetry -- get into it!