The introspection has led me to be currently rereading "Eat Pray Love". And although I love it, I do think maybe Elizabeth Gilbert is a little nuts. Or was. And I totally mean that in a good way. Next up on the list is to reread "The Happiness Project". Gretchen Rubin is another woman who I think is slightly nuts. In a totally good way. Both books seem very much like very driven women have succumbed to their woo-woo side and embark on a journey to fix what's missing from their lives. Or not missing. Whatever. Either way, both books are a personal journey of looking to improve their lives. Or social-emotional state.
Because I also love the work of Glennon Doyle Melton, which you can find at www.momastery.com and because she says she has been so influenced by Dr Brene´ Brown, I watched her TEDtalks this morning (give me a break, I'm kicking coffee and am too tender from my chiro appt yesterday to do any exercise, I needed to take my mind off of it). You can find them here:
All I can say is wow. Shame and vulnerability are really at the root of all of the stuff. You know, the stuff that gets in the way. Of everything. Shame prohibits vulnerability. Without vulnerability there is no compassion, empathy or joy. Doesn't that really just sum it all up? Without joy, how do you find happiness, or what I think people (women?!) are really searching for--contentment?
But, how do you really let go of shame? And I'm not talking about shame that you did something horrible and should be punished or anything, I'm talking about the shame that so many of us feel. Which is maybe more aptly described as "should". You know what I mean--I should exercise more, I should work longer hours, I should spend more time with my children, I should bake cookies and make jam, and grow my own organic veggies and have hens to lay eggs and volunteer and cook everyday and not watch tv and do yoga and not drink so much wine. The shoulds. The ones that I think in some part of her soul, every human with 2 X chromosomes feels every single fricking day of life on earth. It occurs to me that those with XY chromosomes might too, but that's a little outside my area of expertise.
Glennon talks about the capes she would wear--addiction, bulimia, drug use. BB (because we're so tight I have nicknamed her BB) talks about other "capes" (cloaks? whatever) of perfectionism, judgement, overeating--whatever it is that you use to prevent you from being vulnerable, because of shame. Any of this sounding familiar to anyone? It all hits a little too close to home for comfort.
The unease, the discomfort. The discontent. It's all there. The cloak of keeping the game face on so that it looks like I have my s*** together.
It's raw, and it's uncomfortable. But there it is.
And in that vein, I have added the words evolution and perspective to the name of my blog. Because that's really what it is. And it's really not about fitness or lack thereof anymore. Because I'm not so sure that anyone really gives a rat's a** about whether I'm running or kickboxing or doing yoga. But when I write about other stuff, people comment. Which is really good for my dopamine and seratonin levels :) More about that in Simon Sinek's book, "Start With Why". There's a TEDtalk for that too.
And to link all of this back to professional development?! Start with why (that's easy, the kids), think about what their biology dictates for success, help them move past the shame (yeah, we do it to them--report cards?!) and move into vulnerability so that they can learn. I truly believe that without acceptance and an absence of shame, they won't learn. Same with teachers (and admin!).
And there you have it. Full circle. What BB calls a "spiritual awakening". I'm not sure about that, but it's certainly fodder to ruminate upon.
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