"Nothing good was ever easy." 

It's a quote derived from Theodore Roosevelt who said, more specifically, “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty…"

My rebel self wants rage against this. "Life doesn't have to be so hard!" And yet, the most prized accomplishments, the most beautiful moments came because we cared enough to work harder for something.

Did we need to suffer endlessly? No. And I think that's the true distinction here. Something can be challenging without causing suffering. Some stretching, yes. A little sore, of course. Some things toppled over or released? Definitely. But we don't have to spend time whirling in the downward spiral of difficulty. 

In fact, keeping that extra layer out of the equation will speed up the process of working toward what we want to accomplish. Simply by acknowledging that the work IS hard allows us  keep going and stop the voices in our heads that shame us for...

It's interesting to be in the middle of a thousand things and still be able to find some sense of peace. My mind likes to second guess it at first, a short and messy mindfulness practice when I can get to it or prioritize it. The parts of ourselves that like to keep a running list of things that aren't done yet, of phones calls we've been putting off making, of the dishes in the sink.

But mindfulness, in the moment, can include those things as long as we place them on a little cloud and watch them float away in the mind's eye. I rely on nature to bring me back to the present, because its beauty calls me inward - reflecting something perhaps.

Today, as I sat quietly on my porch it was the deep, bright blue of the sky. The lush green of the leaves on the trees after a few days of rain. The warbling of the wrens and the faint tinkering of the wind chimes behind me. Nature is not always quiet, but it knows how to quiet our thoughts and pull us into the present. For that, I'm grateful.

...

I often find inspiration from the wisdom of others, the collective and integrated parts of our humanity inextricably linked together helps us expand individually as well. Today, that wisdom comes from Eve Ensler, playwright and author who said: "When we give the world what we want the most, we heal the broken part inside of each of us."

I suppose then, this is what I am hoping to do with my upcoming memoir, Every Day, I'm Brave. As I work to finalize and piece together all its parts, I've come to a deeper knowing that what so many, including myself, really want is to be seen, heard, and loved both as we are in our full expression and through the work we do to better ourselves.

We are not broken, but parts of us feel deeply broken.

The parts that are afraid or constantly worry so much so that we are paralyzed and stunted with inaction. The parts that are unwilling or unable to open more fully to receive love because it's been hurt before. The parts that are sabotaging the dreams and...

Today, the Universe wants you to know that you are loved. 

No matter what is going on in the world or in and around you, you are loved. 

There are scary bits and frustrations, complex issues and moving parts, but ultimately there is only the moment and there is love. 

So breathe into the moment, just for 5 seconds or even 10 minutes, you may not see the world change around you, but your inner world will shift.

Just enough to take a deep breath. To allow for the space between to widen just enough for a new thought to come in, a connection to be made, a surrender or action step to be taken.

And you are loved through it.

Through the heartache and deep grief, through the joy and the ecstatic, you are loved deeply by the energy of the lattice that holds your atoms together. The rhythm of your cells and the ever-evolving vibration of all that is.

It is love.

What does bravery mean to you? In my upcoming memoir, Every Day, I'm Brave I recount the moment in which I realized that bravery exists on a spectrum and I could finally, for once, place myself upon it.

I'd been so scared of so many things in my life, stuff most people don't think twice about: potlucks, second floors of a mall, the random and unlikely possibility that the floor beneath me will suddenly crumble. Lettuce. 

But there are things that others are afraid of that I'm willing to do or be around, nervous or not: get on stage to sing, quit a steady, well-paying job because it's just not personally fulfilling, bees.

I had spent years believing that I was one of the few that had phobias or other fears while the people around me ate with little to no worry or went for the promotion not worried about the travel or all day meetings they'd now be stuck in. I had partners that flew across the ocean without issue, or got on a roller coaster for the fun and thrill of it.

As I...

It can be scary to allow other people to read your writing. There are definitely some things that can come through that are for your eyes only, but there are also things that might benefit a reader or that you're really wanting to share with a few people or a global audience!

At every step of the process, sharing our writing and being visible with who we are as writers can prompt some of those critical and scared voices to come through.

"What if they don't like it?"

"What if I'm the only one who thinks it's meaningful?"

"This is so dumb, no one will want to read it!"

Here's the thing. Not everyone will like it, not everyone with think it's meaningful. The good news is, that's okay! Your story, your message, it's not FOR everyone. But it is for the people who need to hear it, who are yearning for a reflection of their own struggle and the hope that it could be different some day.

So keep writing, and keep sharing your story in safe spaces first to work those visibility muscles. And...

That old saying, "practice makes perfect" has become pretty obsolete because perfection has a bad rap these days. Rightly so, we don't need to do something perfectly--especially if it's going to wreak havoc on our psyche and render us immobile, or ruin our sleep, nutrition, and relationships. And does "perfect" even exist?! I think not, in fact the imperfections are what often make an experience, a person, a work of art, unique and special. 

But practice DOES make better. It's important to continue to do the reps. It works the synapses of our brains, it draws deeper lines and faster connections, and creates muscle memory. It helps us become better at what we long to become good at: a sport, an instrument, a skill, even an idea. 

We can start small, especially when it comes to writing. Just 5 or 10 minutes gets the pen flowing or the ideas more fleshed out. Finding that kind of time is possible. Making that kind of time is necessary. 

So start with today: what is...

As the lyrics from Gloria Estefan's "Rhythm is gonna get you" plays on repeat in my mind, I contemplate the new rhythm created from the slow down of the 30 day project sprint I was in into something more sustainable long term.

While I wrote six days a week for the last five weeks in order to reignite this blog, get into a more consistent writing practice, and offer some (hopefully) helpful anecdotes and tidbits for you, what is becoming clear now that the sprint is over is that I want to be a little more mindful and intentional about what I lay down here for my readers.

It's not that there isn't good (enough) content here, or that I don't enjoy sitting down and just seeing what comes through, but I do desire to have some continuity as well.

And maybe I already do, naturally, and maybe it doesn't matter as much as I think it does in the context of branding and marketing (which I've always got my eye on), but it's a desire nonetheless and so we shall see what develops as I come to...

A Monday Poem:

It used to be I dreaded you,
But now I kinda love you.
I get to be in the process of creating and supporting
in a way that allows for uniqueness and freedom

A way that demands I stand in my authority and believe in my own wisdom and ability, so I get to show up differently than before.

And that is a gift.

But the real learning is that this is possible in many contexts, that we can show up in our authority, deeply gratified by the process of standing for what we believe in AND developing the strategies, practices, and systems that allow for spaciousness, growth, and wonder.

What the Universe wants us to know is: 

That it can be an uphill climb but not impossible. That the dream you dare to dream is something in your grasp or else you wouldn't even be able to see it in your mind's eye.

It may not turn out exactly as you have envisioned, because you will learn things along the path that will demand evolution of the outcome. But in a good way, in a way you never thought possible because the path is the Way and the dream is the motivation to step on to the path.

We often hear the phrase, "life is a journey" or "it's not about the result but what you learn along the way," and it's true (or else why would it be a cliche). So how do we rest in the knowing of that? How do we release or uncover the parts of us that need completion, accomplishment, that feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment of a job well done?

Well that's okay to want those, too. It's natural-part of the wiring, and it's not the end all be all, I guess is the point here. That we can...