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On my way home from a look-see in NJ on Monday, I experienced a profound sense of joy. It was a combination of moments that added up to a burst of feeling in my body that I wanted to embrace and explore.
Here are the elements that composed that exquisite awareness:
- It was a glorious June day.
- I hit NO traffic on my round-trip to New Jersey.
- I needed to see a space for an event I’m facilitating, and it was perfect and inspiring.
- I had gotten a virus on my Mac laptop and made a convenient appointment at the Apple store Genius Bar en route to have it removed. (Sidebar – My curiosity got the better of me, and I clicked on a link to see the infamous boxer shorts and paid the price. Ugh!)
- When checking messages on my voicemail I heard one from Barbara Bigford whom I had recently blogged about and consider a rock star. Another thrill.
- That night was EWN’s Grand Networking Event which is an annual high point where I get to hang out with my entrepreneurial clients, friends and colleagues.
When I talk about success, I say that it’s being in the present moment with your desired outcomes and acknowledging that you’re there. Otherwise, it’s always about striving. Monday was a really successful day.
I occasionally allow myself the joyful distraction of online videos, particularly if they’re sent by one of my kids. I say occasionally because the temptation is frequent. Laura, my youngest, sent me this link to something called Grand Rapids LipDub. She and I share a devotion to Improv Everywhere, so she knew I’d take time to watch this clip with a similar feel. I loved it and hope you will, too. It represents qualities I’m passionate about living in this country of ours–the spirit of community, the freedom to create and the joy of that freedom in evidence.
I posted it on my Facebook news feed and got a comment from my Virtual Assistant, Valerie, who lives in Grand Rapids. I didn’t know that since her mailing address has a different name listed (Wyoming)–kind of like Rowayton being part of Norwalk, which not everyone knows. Valerie knew all about the LipDub and had even been invited to participate.
She wrote me a detailed message about the planning of the event and why she wasn’t able to participate. Everyone in Grand Rapids knew about it and could be in it, but Val had already made plans with friends for that weekend as well as commitments to her family soon after. She was marshalling her resources. I shared her detailed account of all this with Laura who immediately wrote back and said:
“So cool! Shows she must be a good assistant because she doesn’t blow things off for other things.”
I, too, admire Val’s values and love that Laura underscored them in her response.
Portrait by Mindy Green
- Rug by Malene Barnett
Tuesday night 30 Artsy Girls gathered to celebrate our 10th Anniversary. This is a group I started out of a desire to hang out with my most creative friends all at once. Twenty of us got together ten years ago for the first time at Bloodroot Restaurant in Bridgeport to try out the formula. Towards the end of that evening, Beverly Ellsley pulled me aside and said, “We have to do this again, and let’s have the next one at my house.” We did meet at her house (er, log mansion) three months later and have been meeting quarterly ever since.
To give you a glimpse of some of the talent in the room, I’ve selected a mere smattering of visual images from members’ websites. More on Artsy Girls another time…
Still Life by Betty Ball
Illustration by Maggie Swanson
Novel by Cynthia Keller
Shadow Box by Karen Silver Bloom
Rug by Liz Alpert Fay
