Pee Cloths... Poetry... and Prose. Here I am.

I'm starting something new, and I hope you'll join me.

You can listen to me reading an audio version of this post by clicking the ‘play’ button below.

Hello! I’m Anastasia. I’m the founder of a company called Kula Cloth, and a few other things that involve motorcycles and dancing. But it wasn’t always that way. Less than a decade ago, you wouldn’t haven known me - because I was a miserable, complaining Railroad Police officer who felt very, VERY stuck.

A little over 6 years ago now, I had a near death experience that changed my life forever. In a split second, I saw the everythingness of everything - and realized that every fear I ever had about what I wanted to create with my life had been manufactured by…. ME. I decided to change that. On July 28th of 2017, I left my job as a Railroad Police officer and I told everybody that I was starting a career in the, ‘outdoor industry’. This was code for, “I don’t have an F#*ING CLUE what I’m about to do.”

When I left my job, I took a giant step into a place that feels horrifying to most people - a place called ‘The Great Unknown’. I had no solid plan, and leaving my job went against absolutely everything that I had been ever taught about needing to have a ‘stable job’ and paycheck. I still remember sending the e-mail to my boss on the day that I gave my notice… every single cell in my body was screaming ‘NOOOOOO!!!’… but my heart was very clearly saying, ‘YES’.

On that day, I sidestepped every what-if that I had ever allowed to get in my way, and I walked into the unknown, which is a magical place where anything and everything is possible. The day that you stop pressing the ‘repeat’ button on where you are … is the day that you begin to create the things that you want to create. I believed this very much on that day, and I believe it now - and I hope that my story can be proof of this process for you.

An important note here: I’m absolutely not suggesting that you need to run out and quit your job right now. This substack will not be focused on making drastic changes - because what you don’t know yet is that quitting my job was not a ‘sudden’ thing for me. It was the result of a lot of very small things that ultimately led me to make that decision. You have to start exactly where you are and begin this process by being open to the possibilities - and that’s it. Instead of saying, “I can’t do this because of XYZ” … you can start to shift to, “I don’t know how this is possible, but I know there is a way, and I’m open to seeing what it is.” So, if you aren’t where you want to be right now - just know, that’s great. Begin to trust that you are where you are supposed to be.

After I left my job, there was a lot of crying and a few nights spent in the fetal position, worrying if I had done the ‘right thing’. I’m not going to lie and tell you that it was all lollipops and sunshine - it is terrifying to reprogram your brain and dismantle your limiting beliefs about what is possible. But, if you want to create something new - you simply cannot live on ‘auto pilot’ and expect things to change.

In 2018, after a lot more crying, I launched my business, Kula Cloth - which makes an antimicrobial pee cloth for anybody who squats when they pee. Kula Cloth was born from an idea that ‘came to me’ on a backpacking trip in 2016 - and a deep desire to promote Leave No Trace ethics among outdoor enthusiasts. I launched Kula Cloth on my personal facebook page, and the rest… as they say… is history. Kula Cloth is now sold worldwide and nationwide in REI stores. And while the success of Kula Cloth might seem big - make no mistake - Kula Cloth is still considered a cottage/small brand, compared to the megabrands like Columbia, Mountain Hardwear and Merrell.

As I progressed through my Kula Cloth journey, I was faced with obstacles beyond my wildest comprehension - and I understood why the journey of entrepreneurship often left humans feeling burned out and broken. I began to notice that the more I focused on the things that went ‘wrong’… the more things seemed to go wrong. And the busier I got… the busier I got. No amount of ‘working harder’ ever seemed to help me accomplish anything even remotely productive.

Me, circa 2018 with one of the first Kulas I ever made … and a violin in my backpack.

Ultimately, Kula Cloth has been more of a spiritual journey for me, rather than a business venture. The product itself is something that I love dearly - but the product is meaningless to me unless it serves a greater purpose. Through Kula Cloth, I’ve had the opportunity to run a business in a non traditional way - focusing on abundance rather than lack… and prioritizing fun over productivity. I believe with my entire heart that what we create in this world is a product of what we spend our time focusing on. Do you want to create abundance and freedom? Then you must find the feeling of those things now. For me, Kula is about kindness, generosity, connection, love, dancing, creativity and fun.

And that’s why I started The Kula Diaries.

Because I was given a moment that many people don’t get to come back from - and it gave me the opportunity to see into a place where everything is possible. Not just for me, but for you too. The greatest gift that I’ve experienced in my life is the gift to be able to share what I’ve learned with others - and to watch them experience the SAME transformation in their life too.

And so, if you are here and reading this - I’m really really glad you are here. I hope that I can share things through this newsletter and through this community that will help you connect more deeply with yourself and will help you see what I know exists within you. If you are feeling stuck, I hope that my words or stories or poems or videos will help you begin to find a glimmer of hope and excitement about creating the things that are important to you.

In case you’re wondering - this isn’t going to be a newsletter focused on pee cloths. I mean, I love a pee cloth as much as the next person does - but really, I want to provide value and inspiration for YOU… and chances are, you probably don’t want to talk about pee cloths all day (if you do, let me know - we can do a zoom call for those folks).

I am not special. And I don’t mean that in a bad way. I guess what I mean is … I’m no more special than you. We are all equally brilliant… equally miraculous. We knew this when we were born, but somehow we forgot it, and it is the journey of life to come back to this knowing. On the day that you were born, you didn’t question it for a second - you knew that you were a part of the universe and that the universe was a part of you - and that you came here with a purpose to realize your greatest potential as a soul in a body. And then, the ‘rest of the world’ started telling you all of the rules about the ways things were… and you forgot. It’s not your fault - everybody forgets. It’s a part of the process - and it’s nothing to feel bad about, because all of the stuff that you experienced during your ‘time of forgetfulness’ has so much meaning and value. You needed to see that stuff in order to make the impact that you are meant to make in this world.

This is how I hope you’ll feel after reading my Kula Diaries every week!

Above all things, I feel like sharing this message - being a tiny trail blaze in a sometimes dark-feeling world - is my personal mission in life. I was given the gift of being able to see the good that exists all around us, and I want to share that with everybody, because it is one thing that I believe is worth sharing. My goal is to give you tangible ways that you can consciously create whatever you want to create in your life.

I have been on the other side of the doubters and the eye rollers. I will not be that person for you. I am here to uplift you and to cheer you on. I am here to tell you that everything that you want to create, and more, is possible.

If you are here for my weekly posts - welcome. And if you join this substack as a subscriber, I’m also hosting LIVE monthly book clubs and ‘Power Hours’ where we will get to talk (on zoom!) about deep things and really explore what we feel excited to create in our lives. Together, I hope we can generate some beautiful, collective energy… and then we’ll just see what happens.

I’ll end with my favorite quote from Herman Melville, because I think it sums up my attitude about going into anything new:

“I know not all that may be coming, but be it what it will, I'll go to it laughing.” ― Herman Melville

Wherever you are today in this life - please know this… I’m so grateful that we are on this giant spinning orb in an infinite cosmos at the same time. I don’t believe in accidents - I believe that we are all here for a reason, and that reason is to wake up to the good within each of us - and intentionally bring and share that good with others. The ripple effect of a single kind word or good deed can literally change the universe - and I want to be a part of that change for good - and I hope you will join me.

I’m looking forward to sharing more with all of you - thank you for being here!

Love,

Anastasia