Category Archives: Danielle LaPorte

Something Good

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1. I am still completely grooving on Yuna’s album today. I think in the last 48 hours, I’ve listened to it at least 20 times. Favourite Thing is another great track. It reminds me of Eric, my favorite.

It’s the way you drink your coffee
And how you have faith in me
And you love your cameras and you tell me that I’m good enough
Boy you bubble-wrap my heart

And all the things that I used to be afraid of
Suddenly it all disappeared

You remain my most favorite thing
And everywhere I go you’re here with me
You remain my most favorite thing
And all the time I keep you near me

The way you look out of the window
And you stay because you know
It wasn’t your intention but you caught how boats are crashing
Like the wave I’ve been waiting for

And all the things that I used to be afraid of
Suddenly it all disappeared

You remain my most favorite thing
And everywhere I go you’re here with me
You remain my most favorite thing
And all the time I keep you near me
The way you look out of the window

When I feel like the world has turn its back on me
When I feel all alone and I’m loving nobody
Oh, when the people wanted me to be somebody else
But you love me completely

You remain my most favorite thing
And everywhere I go you’re here with me
You remain my most favorite thing
And all the time I keep you near me
The way you look out of the window

2. The Fine Art of Limitation on Be More With Less. I have trouble (real, big trouble) with setting limits, so this piece was a good reminder. Courtney Carver promises “I want you to have everything you deserve, and by setting limits, you’ll discover that everything you deserve is available. A lovely life is yours for the asking.”

3. Mad with joy… from Carry it Forward. This is a great post from Christa, and starts with one of my new favorite quotes from Iris Murdoch: “People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things with us.”

4. The Courage to Be Uncool from Owning Pink. Not sure if you’ve noticed this, kind and gentle reader, but I am not cool. I used to care, but now I am totally okay with it. Still, a post like this from Lissa Rankin, reminding me that it’s okay, more than okay, is really nice.

5. Neil Gaiman Speaks to The University of the Arts in Philadelphia Graduating Class. Oh my, how I love this man: his mind, his voice, his work. He is brilliant and funny and so utterly himself, and wants the rest of us to be the same.

6. This is Your Guarantee of Failure. Proceed anyway. It’s not a surprise that Danielle LaPorte is on fire with white hot truth, but holy wow and holy crap, I love this! I printed it out and have been reading it to myself from time to time. This is so important. Please read it. Every time I get to this part, I cry, and then I forgive myself.

There will be many, many things that you’ll wish you had said — fiercely loving and bravely tender things, righteously justice-rendering things that could change everything — but instead, you’ll fail to rise in the way you wanted to.

7. The DIY: Fastest Friendship Bracelet Ever. I’m not sure I’ll ever grow out of my love for these, and I feel the need to make some and give them out, tie them around the wrists of the women I love. Blame it on summer vacation, I suppose.

8. 60 Selfless Ways to Pay it Forward from Marc and Angel Hack Life. I like this much better than my to-do list.

9. So You Think You Can Dance clip. This makes me cry every time I watch it, and I have a huge crush on this girl. The way she moves, the way she is: beautiful.


10. An amazing lip dub marriage proposal. You may have already seen this, but if you haven’t, it’s pretty sweet. I love a good flash mob, and combining that with a marriage proposal?! The goodness just about kills me.

11. Creative Writing Prompts. Lots and lots of them.

12. What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets.

13. Beating the Anxiety of Online Reading on ZenHabits by Leo Babauta. I needed the reminder, so thought you might too. But Leo, there’s just so much good stuff out there…

15. This quote from Cheri Huber, in honor of the two awesome yoga classes I’ve attended in the past 48 hours:

Practice offers us a lens through which we can examine suffering—what
causes it, why it happens, how it happens. It gives us the tools to tap into our authentic nature and to experience being lived by Life – present, whole, and joyful.

Q is for Question

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image by f/oxymoron

I love a question’s sense of curiosity, its longing to connect and understand, even its doubt, and it’s ability to prompt a response. Even if it’s a question you refuse to answer out loud, even if its asking offends you, you find yourself thinking about it, pondering, wondering, and maybe, eventually, arriving at knowing.

  • an expression of inquiry that invites or calls for a reply; an interrogative sentence, phrase, or gesture
  • to seek, ask, inquire, quiz, query, examine
  • a subject or point open to controversy; an unsettled issue; a point or subject under discussion or being considered; a difficult matter or problem
  • uncertainty, possibility, a feeling or expression of doubt about the truth or validity of something, not knowing

A life coach once told me that the essence of coaching was knowing the right questions to ask, gently guiding clients to their own truth, allowing them to investigate, consider, and arrive at an authentic answer, a personal realization, deep knowing.


image by f/oxymoron

And you, when will you begin that long journey into yourself? ~Rumi

Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
~Mary Oliver, The Summer Day

What are you truly hungry for? ~Rachel Cole

What do you long to say with your life? ~Patti Digh

Why am I here? What is my purpose? What is the meaning of all this? ~Every Human Who Has Ever Lived

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? ~The Kid in That Commercial

 

Danielle LaPorte’s The Burning Question Series: She says, “Generally, I think people should ask more questions. Of themselves. Of each other. Questions are doorways that lead to higher consciousness…or pop culture trivia. Both are good.”

Writing for me is the process of asking questions and searching for answers.

I ask the birds where to find joy, and expect them to know because of their understanding of song and flight.

I ask the fish “how’s the water?” but their only answer is “what’s water?”

Sometimes, the questions are new, different, and unfamiliar. Other times, it’s the same old question, again and again, over and over, never an answer.

image by walknboston

It’s good to be curious, but at times, it’s also good to be silent, to ask for nothing, to be content, where you are, as you are, with reality just as it is. For me, meditation is an opportunity to listen for answers. And when there are no answers, I sit, still and quiet, with the vast, unconditional silence and space that is beyond questions and their answers.