Let's Make Lemonade

One of my favorite summertime drinks is lemonade.  You take something that is awfully sour and turn it into something sweet.  You can even jazz it up with some ingredients like lavender or liquor.  What a beautifully versatile drink.

I think lemonade and life have a lot in common:  You can change it up depending on what you add to it or keep it just as it is.  I am the type of gal who likes to mix it up, I've come to learn.  But with anything out of the familiar, it is a risk, and risk-taking can provide some big wins or big losses.

When I was younger, I wasn't as cautious about a lot of things.  I think that is the case for many of us.  We learn to be fearful as we grow older and I lost my optimism and throw-caution-to-the-wind attitude over the years.  Many people who know me would gasp at such a reflection but I struggled for many years trying to regain an inner sense of my can-do attitude.  

It took a lot of work over a period of time, but I got my groove back.  It is how I moved across the country to a city I've never been to; how I followed my passion to produce a podcast about the arts and find some funding to help support it; it is how I committed to writing a book for women over 40 who think the world can go eff itself for thinking it can pretend we don't exist or matter.  

One of my always present intentions is to make choices that make me proud but also my daughter proud.  A lesson or nugget of wisdom I hope to share with her is to dream big and go for it.

Over the past year or so, I have made it a point to welcome failure as one of the realities to embrace.  No one I know likes that "F" word.  With baby steps, I have been pausing to look at what didn't work and find the wisdom I can carry forward from the experience. And it is due to that shift in perspective that has led me to pursue something I have wanted to do for eons but lacked the confidence to do it: launch my own business!

After years in the nonprofit sector, I've learned a thing or two, and the knowledge applies in any part of the country.  I am taking my two decades plus of across-the-board experience and offering it to organizations who want to raise the bar on getting their message out into the world.  All nonprofits want to do that but lack the capacity to do it.  My role is focusing support for those who lack the resources.

More to come later!  I have a plethora of skills that came out of success and failure.  I remind myself that we have to fail in order to learn.

I'm failing my way to happiness.

Out with the old....

“For me, becoming isn’t about arriving somewhere or achieving a certain aim. I see it instead as forward motion, a means of evolving, a way to reach continuously toward a better self. The journey doesn’t end.” ― Michelle Obama, Becoming

Today is a big day for me.  It is my final day of employment with an organization I have been with for the past three years.  I have enjoyed my role there and I am sad to leave. I accomplished a lot in my work as a fundraiser and enjoyed spending time with my colleagues supporting their work in providing care to foster and adopted children.

Last August, I started telecommuting for the agency since I moved to Rhode Island from Oregon.  My heart is heavy and I am scared but I am also excited about what could be next for me, professionally.  Yesterday was August 1, my one year anniversary of leaving Portland to drive cross country with my dear friend, Liam. I recall that day of excitement, free pie from Village Inn (we went there for breakfast and they had leftovers from pie day - score!), and the open road. It was one heck of an adventure and an experience I will treasure for rest of my days.

      

Now I am facing another journey, another change - a welcome one but not without some anxiety.  I have some plans that I am not quite ready to reveal at this point, but stay tuned!  Right now I want to be present for the process, for this transition, of letting go.  

We live in a world that changes in a heartbeat and it is a challenge to just slow down and enjoy it.  We are bombarded by loss, struggle, fear, anxiety - just to name a few.  We bear witness to the struggles and heartbreak of others. Sometimes, it is just plain hard to be happy among the realities of the world.  I find it way easier to 'check out' with a few hours of binge watching Netflix or Hulu, but I have to admit, I don't feel a whole lot better afterwards.  

I decided to mark this transition as a significant one that I will honor.  Have you ever intentionally done something to honor a celebration or a loss?  Years ago, I purchased a book called The Women's Retreat Book: A Guide to Restoring, Rediscovering, and Reawakening Your True Self - in a Moment, an Hour, a Day, or a Weekend.  I highly recommend it to those of you who like to pause and reflect.  The activities I have used from the book have helped me with some major life changes.

I am blessed with people, near and far, who believe in me, like my daughter and my closest of friends. My heart swells with gratitude when someone shares kind regards with me. Thank you. This knowledge will help me move forward.

When I finish this final day for this particular experience, I am going to take care of myself and inhale the beauty that is my life. I encourage you to welcome opportunities to pause and just be.  It can make a world of difference, believe me, and get you just a little bit closer to happy. Aw, heck.  Go out an hug someone you love, too. It wouldn't hurt.