Category Archives: Vulnerability

Day of Rest

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I didn’t post yesterday because I was in Boulder attending the first day of a two day workshop with Brene’ Brown, The Power of Vulnerability. Brene’ is recording it to be made into a six cd set that will be released later in the year, and videos to be used in an upcoming class, but she wanted a live audience to talk to, rather than sitting in a sound booth talking to a microphone. It has been an amazing experience to be in the same room with her and other like-hearted people, interested in learning how to be vulnerable, in living and loving wholeheartedly. Brene’ is the best storyteller–wise, grounded, authentic, and so funny.

Just in case you haven’t seen her TED talks, I’m going to include them here. They are worth the time. The first one, along with her book The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are, changed my life.

Brene’ talked yesterday about how we live in a culture of scarcity, constantly feeling “not ___________ enough” (fill in the blank: not good enough, not rich enough, not safe enough, etc.), and that our first thought in the morning is “I didn’t get enough sleep” and our last thought before falling asleep is “I didn’t get enough done.”

She also said that after a decade that included 9/11, war, and a troubled economy, “I think we’re tired of being afraid, of thinking and worrying about what we should fear and who we should blame.” This reminded me of a quote Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche shared last week that I’ve been contemplating:

Perhaps when we are finally fed up with torturing ourselves and others, out of our exhaustion will arise a pause in which we will collectively reflect upon our goodness.

sakyong mipham in tibet

I don’t know about you, kind and gentle reader, but I am certainly fed up with smashing myself to bits, tired of judging and blaming others, sick and tired of the whole thing. And even though Brene’ warned us yesterday that “those of us willing to show up and be seen will get our asses kicked,” I think I’ll take that alternative to being stuck, seemingly safe in my armor, disengaged and numb in my cocoon, and miserable.

Go ahead, life–kick my ass. I’m going to do what Susan Piver suggests, open my heart and show up with confidence, “the willingness to be as ridiculous, luminous, intelligent, and kind as you really are, without embarrassment.”

Something Good

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blossoms at lory state park

25 Self-Care Tips for the Body & Soul from Gentle Living. This is a really great list. The only thing missing is “26. Read this list.”

The Power of Vulnerability, a two day workshop in Boulder with Brene’ Brown–holy wow! I wished last week that I could experience an in-person workshop with her, and only five days later, less than a week, a friend emails to tell me it’s happening. I registered right after I heard about it. It’s going to be awesome.

Telling True Stories with Laurie Wagner. It just started today, and it’s already awesome. Just to give you a taste, here’s a quote from Laurie, “Good writing is honest writing. Good writing is just naming things as they are – beautifully, soberly and as truthfully as you can.” See what I mean?

Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness Juice. My favorite one so far.

And to finish, a few things I love right now about Fort Collins, (in addition to all the things I normally love about Fort Collins):

Gilsdorf Garage. Growing up the daughter of an incredibly skilled, smart, and honest mechanic, I have high standards for mechanics and shops. In the many years I’ve lived too far away from my dad to have him work on my car, I have at various times been mistreated and cheated (once it was so bad, we nicknamed that car “the money pit”), and would never recommend someone who wasn’t really good.

On the Gilsdorf website, they say “Gildsdorf Garage has been in business for over 50 years with the principles of honesty, integrity, and quality, guided by the ethics founded by Ed Gilsdorf in 1950.” When I got the snow tires taken off my car this weekend, the tire shop said it was time for new brakes. This morning, we showed up unannounced at Gilsdorf’s and not only did they work us in, but will have my car ready by the end of the day. They are always professional, kind, and they do good work for a fair price. There’s even a chance that they might wash my car if they have time and that would be awesome.

Red Table Soups. I’ve had at least ten different kinds of soup, (there’s a different one each day), at both locations, (the original and The Mayor of Old Town), and they have always been awesome. How do they do that? They also make some pretty fine sandwiches, and I’ve heard their pizza is really good too.

Lory State Park and Horsetooth Mountain Open Space. Eric and I hiked a trail on Sunday that started in Lory State Park, went into Horsetooth Mountain Park, and looped back around. Lory is only ten miles from our house, so super easy to get to, and there are so many trail options. You can hike as easy or as hard, as short or as long as you like.

easter grass along the trail: awesome