What if knowing yourself isn't always a blessing? We've spent years studying our patterns, wounds, triggers and shadows, but has all this self-awareness made us freer, or simply better at watching ourselves? From a childhood visit to the Oracle of Delphi to the uncomfortable revelations of modern dating, I explore the paradox of self-discovery, the seductive luxury of being oblivious, and the possibility of returning to innocence without abandoning everything we've learned.

Know thyself. And then, for the love of life, forget yourself for a while.

I'm getting inspired to rearrange the seating order at my inner banquet. After all, the monsters are just hungry, too. Let's bring another couvert for rage, lust, entitlement, neediness, sluttiness, aggression, one for the whores and the pimps, another one for greed, laziness, slowness, the desire to end your own life, one for fear, one for desperation, and whoever else needs a seat.

The monsters want to be met. No need to unleash them, but meet them. Light the candles, pull out the chairs, and meet them.

We all have monsters. The parts of ourselves we desperately try to hide: jealousy, entitlement, rage, neediness, avoidance, greed and the desires we consider unacceptable. In Episode 35, Flora Petri takes us into the darkness of her own inner world, exploring shame, self-awareness and the exhausting work of keeping our unwanted parts buried. What happens when we stop exiling them and offer them a seat at the table instead? A deeply personal exploration of shadow work, self-acceptance, intimacy and the courage to meet ourselves without turning away.

What happens when you have the power to get what you want?

In Episode 34, Flora Petri explores the seductive, uncomfortable and sometimes terrifying sides of power through personal experiences in diplomacy, corporate law, sexuality and life abroad. From money, beauty and status to erotic influence, control and emotional sovereignty, this Love Letter examines what power reveals about our character, desires, entitlement and capacity to relate. Where do we enjoy our power, abuse it, deny it or give it away? And who do we become when nobody can stop us?

Stop taking.

What happens when giving becomes a hidden contract? When dinner comes with an expectation, affection becomes leverage, sex becomes currency, or generosity carries an invisible invoice?

In Episode 33, Flora Petri explores sex, money, power, desire and the covert exchanges underneath our relationships. From touch that wants something from us to the unspoken agreements we create in love, dating, sex and work: Where does giving become taking? What do we secretly believe other people owe us? And what becomes possible when we stop hiding the invoice, get clear about what we actually want, and learn to relate instead?

What happens when sexuality becomes frictionless? When desire is met with a click, novelty is infinite, and nobody asks you to stay after you come?

Porn doesn't exist in isolation. It lives inside a culture increasingly accustomed to immediacy: faster, harder, more, next. And while sex has perhaps never been more visible, our actual sexuality often remains profoundly secret.

In Episode 32, I explore porn not through the tired lens of good or bad, but as a doorway into secrecy, shame, desire, instant gratification and erotic patience. What are we learning about sex when porn becomes one of our teachers? What happens to our capacity to want without immediately getting? And can we consume sexuality without becoming more capable of relating sexually?

Perhaps porn isn't the problem. Perhaps it's a particularly intimate mirror.

Don’t stop watching. Start watching yourself.

Where does aggression go when it has nowhere to go? We weaponize it, against others or ourselves, harming ourselves, or the ones around us. The fist goes through the wall. Or into a face. The other extreme is suppressing it, swallowing it, internalizing it and letting it fester in our bones. Neither teaches us how to actually be with anger. There are some fine and important distinguishes to be made here: anger does not equal violance. Aggression does not equal abuse. Intensity does not equal danger. You see, it truly is a question of the external expression of internal experience. A strong No can show up as anger. It means enough. Back away. A boundary was crossed. I need protection. I need space. I am fucking here.

And, crazy thing, anger and Eros are both life force. They both fiercely protect our aliveness, or life. They are different expressions of the same fire. Sexual energy says: I want. Fuck. Anger says: I don't want. Fuck off.

When are you ever you? At some point the mask might drop, or even worse, you gotta keep it on anyway. You gotta keep it on in your home, with your kids, with your partners, and then the work environment.

What do I want that threatens who I think I am? You might have spent your entire life policing your desires. Not wanting, not being allowed to want. And again, what you find might scare you.

The shadow doesn’t disappear because we are good. It simply gets pushed away to fester in the darkness. What becomes possible when we stop trying to become better people and start admitting that we’re not only good?

Who did you become to be loved? We learn to want less, need less, say less and ask for nothing. But what if intimacy begins when we stop making ourselves smaller and finally dare to say: I WANT.