Month: May 2022

This, in case you’re curious, is a true story. And, perhaps, a bit too much information.

The Muse, however, insists…

I had knee surgery 6 times in 9 years. Along the way, there have been several significant falls and more than a few lower back hissy fits.

Thus, running really isn’t my thing. There are days when walking is not so much my thing.

Frankly, my muscles are extremely well trained in the fine art of holding still. It feels safer.

Except that it isn’t.

In fact, staying still creates all manner of problems of its own.

It’s tempting nonetheless.

Thus, a bit of a Netflix binge, where there are no political ads. Grace and Frankie.

I haven’t made it to the new episode yet. I’ve been wandering along memory lane.

And making notes on a new project.

Anyway… somewhere late in season 5, there are several episodes featuring Robert’s adventures with local theatre and The Man of La Mancha.

Robert, for the uninitiated, is played by my old friend, Martin Sheen, aka Jed Bartlet on The West Wing.

I’ve loved The Man of La Mancha since sometime in the early 70’s when a dear friend played Dulcinea in a local theatre production. And, yes, I do still know all the words to The Impossible Dream.

Now you, dear reader, are perhaps wondering what it is about this story that feels like it needs sharing just now.

Yep. The news.

Specifically an apparently active movement brewing in the US Supreme Court to overturn Roe v Wade, the legislation that made abortion a legal choice, about the same time that I was learning the words to The Impossible Dream.

I found myself scribbling down names as I watched.

Stacey. Raphael. Hank. Nikema. Ted. Lucy. Marcus. Jen. Bee…

Then I realized I was humming as I scribbled.

Humming the tune that goes with the lyrics, to run where the brave dare not go.

There are more names, of course. These are our local team, here in my Atlanta ‘hood.

Plus, me.

Because, even though I don’t run, or march, and I don’t necessarily feel brave, I am choosing fierce.

This Guide Grammy is choosing fierce compassion.

Out loud.

So, once again for the home team, my favorite quote from The West Wing:

Abortion is a tragedy. It should be legal. It should be safe. It should be a whole lot rarer than it is.

– Matt Santos, Democrat for President, season 7

I agree. Absolutely. I even have a plan.

A plan which doesn’t involve power hungry insurrectionists and fascist wannabes opposed to masks and vote counting who think they’ve been appointed by their version of “the almighty” to choose what women can do with their bodies.

This is my plan:

Raise the minimum wage to a living wage. Make college affordable. Increase food, shelter, and healthcare assistance to struggling families. Support high quality daycare, universal pre-K, and family leave. Get serious about prosecuting rapists and domestic abusers.

There’s more, but you see where this is going.

I am – historically – a registered nurse. I have assisted with abortions and with c-sections on teen-aged girls nowhere near ready to be mothers. They all felt tragic.

I am an ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA) who learned, in the first church I served, that if I’m going to stand in the pulpit and say, Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is ours in Christ Jesus, I must also be able to say it to a sobbing young woman facing an abortion decision.

I have 2 granddaughters growing up in this world and I vote.

So, while I’ll skip the marching and the running, I won’t be silent, despite all the reasons so many of us were taught to do just that.

And, if you’re still reading, I hope you’ll run with me, where the brave dare not go.

And use your voice. You matter.

ps… these days I get lots of my news from Stephen Colbert. Last night he brought it, with a lot of help from Jose Andres and Ron Howard and with Jose’s groundbreaking project, World Central Kitchen, and the movie Ron is making to tell the story. Here’s the punch line… “We need full tables more than walls!” wck.org

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First, true confession…

I was one of those geeks who loved school. (Well, pretty much. The whole math thing really wasn’t my style.)

Some of the stuff I learned actually comes in handy, now and then, all these years later. Especially when the Legendary Husband and I are watching Jeopardy!

Realistically, though, the purpose of learning most of that stuff, back in the day, was getting enough good girl points to move on to learning the next batch of stuff in the next right place.

These days, though, that doesn’t seem like enough.

I want the stuff I’m learning in this moment to actually help me get to where I want to be. To help me do the things that matter, deep in my heart and spirit.

And one of those things that matters, deep in my heart, is helping others to get where they want to be.

Yesterday was a day like that!

A room full of women with hopes and dreams. (Well, a virtual room.)

And a leader, a few blocks farther down the road, with some amazing experiences and insights to share.

This may not make a great deal of sense on the fly, but we spent the better part of 3 hours playing with words. Words on the way to someplace new.

We started with adjectives. Words others used, or might have used, to describe us along the road.

Questions and lists were involved. And more questions and more lists. And a bunch of wondering.

And more other steps, after that.

Some sharing and listening.

In my case, at least, some sketching.

And a whole lot of peering at things with intentionally different perspectives.

The desired outcome of this adventure was to claim, each of us for ourselves, something very like an organizing principle to guide our unique paths into the future.

Or, as I might phrase it, sorting and editing our filters and strategies based on what matters deep inside.

I’ll be pondering this adventure for a while. One thing, though, blew my mind in the best possible way.

Our Guide, Sam Bennett, was sharing an ah-hah which she learned along the way from one of her own teachers.

Are you ready???

Charisma is public self-acceptance!

– Sam Christensen

Which is kind of like the bumper sticker version of so much of what I want to model for my girls… and help others model for their littles.

And, yes, it takes some practice, but knowing what we’re trying to accomplish is a huge first step in the direction of hope-full change.

Or, as my own amazing teacher, Shiloh Sophia McCloud, would say…

I choose to embrace the messy and the marvelous within me. I shall not diminish my light. I shall shine.

-from To Be Glorious in Tea with the Midnight Muse

Just imagine what the future might be like if we all claimed those truths, and a good dose of wonder, not only for ourselves but for the world!

ps… if you haven’t taken the Intentional Grandmothers Archetype Quiz, now would be a great time! It’s free, fast, fun, and wonder-full! And it puts you on the path for more wonders to come!

pss… is there a longed for, not yet clear, path in your future? Let’s chat! The calendar elves will hook you up with 30 minutes, on me!