Loving Good Enough, Part 2

I’ve been reflecting more about perfectionism and busyness since my last post. Perfectionism is how we protect against the unwanted, unexpected, and uncomfortable that we don’t want to deal with or are afraid of. I will be safe and all will be well if everything in my life is planned, rehearsed, and in its proper place. If I follow the advice of the status quo, I cannot be blamed for mistakes. If I don’t stand out...

Loving Good Enough

I am a recovering list maker. Once upon a time I took great pleasure in making lengthy lists. I drew cute little boxes next to each item. There was always something else to do so the list never reached completion. It continually morphed into a new iteration. I was always busy. I am also a recovering perfectionist.   Not only were my days filled with completing tasks, I had strict standards to live up to. My self...

Listening In

Listen Not as a stranger Listen Belong to solitudes Green Wisdom Remember me?...

Something’s Workin’ Me

Something’s workin’ me Silent Subtle Deep Elusive or unfolding? Be still and know … Trust… That more will be revealed in its own time and in its own way That I am fully equipped to meet whatever comes That Creator did not bring me this far to drop me on my ass Patience… With the pace of medium to slow With the tender that is incubating This is not the time to force or hurry Courage… To...

Go Back to 1st

  My daughter is learning to drive a stick shift.  Remember that?  That hair-rising time while you’re learning to choreograph two feet and three pedals certain that you’re never going to get it. Experiencing the terror of stalling out on a hill with a line of cars behind you all in a hurry to get someplace. The important thing about driving a stick is learning what to do when you stall out. Make no mistake...

What If I’m Wrong?

                  What if: the nervousness I feel when I’m about to speak isn’t fear? that slightly sickly feeling that accompanies a juicy idea isn’t doubt that I’ll be able to pull it off? the resistance I feel when it’s time to work on something I deeply care about is not insufficiency? the perfectionism that grips me in an endless loop of edits and improvements so...

Lessons From Lazing About

I’m grateful for the luxury of enjoying a lot of time in the garden this summer – now that the fog has cleared.  From outward appearances it looks like I’ve been doing a whole lot of nothing.  No books, no technology, no distractions.  What I’ve really been up to is being.   Just me and the greatest teacher of all – Mother Nature. Here are 4 things I’ve learned from her wisdom that I want to...

Life is Half a Bowl of Cherries

  Cherries are my partner,  Michele’s, favorite food.  A few years ago I gave her a cherry tree for her birthday.  (Score one for me on the great presents of a lifetime list.) We planted it in what we hoped would be the ideal spot in our garden, nurtured it and optimistically dreamed of the day we would pick from the abundant crop it would produce. Local and popular opinion weren’t encouraging that it would...

Welcome it All

Many of us have a conditional relationship with ourselves. We focus on what we don’t like and want to change toward some view of being a better person, having a better body or achieving more success in all its many forms.  I’m all for self improvement but toward what end? When we have a feeling or reaction that makes us uncomfortable in any way we rationalize, blame, deny or judge those feelings....

The Future is Bright

Each generation thinks the one coming behind it is going to the dogs.  For my parents it was rock music and hippies.  For us it’s social media, reality TV and texting. The younger generation brings with it a rejection or reinvention of the values, work ethic and culture of their parents.  It’s part of the natural order. This is graduation time.  I’ve been to two recently that have re-ignited my optimism about our...

The Art of Doing Nothing

It’s been hard to write for the past month or so.  The weeks have been fruitful with personal and family events that have inspired, surprised, challenged and deeply touched me.  There is something I sense I want to write about, yet I haven’t been able to wrap my arms around what it is.  The integration is still underway.  It hasn’t felt like the right time. Today I have the time.  Several topics are...

When it’s Over, it’s Over.

    Beginnings, middles and endings.  These are the natural cycles that all life experience moves through. We’re generally better in some and have strengthening work to do in the others.  The first step is to be aware of where we are in the cycle. Each carry a different energy and are accompanied by different emotions. This is a period of endings in my life – high school graduation, projects launched,...

What is Your Heart Dreaming Of?

Last Night as I Lay Sleeping by Antonio Machado Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvelous error!— that a spring was breaking out in my heart. I said: Along which secret aqueduct, Oh water, are you coming to me, water of a new life that I have never drunk? Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvelous error!— that I had a beehive here inside my heart. And the golden bees were making white combs and sweet...

The Enchanted Forest

Practicing the homework that I had just assigned to the students in my Creativity in Business class, I took an alternate route on my morning hike.  I entered the park from a different direction and walked my regular trail in reverse.  I felt slightly off balance doing this and discovered something unexpected. As much as I thrive on and enjoy my morning hikes, I usually have an agenda – combine aerobic exercise in...

Dance with the Mystery

Coincidence. Serendipity. Chance. Happy accidents. Miracles. Synchronicity. These are some of the ways we characterize the mysterious and magical events that happen in our lives that we can’t explain. Watching Shakespeare In Love again recently, I was reminded of the key role this invisible force plays in the creative process.  On many levels the film brilliantly captures the essence of creativity. This time...