Ch-ch-changes 😣

Aug 01, 2018

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#WednesdayWisdom

"Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare." — Audre Lorde

Morning Musings

You know those people who can easily adapt to any given situation? That's not me. I'm not entirely sure when my aversion to change began, but if I were a betting person I'd say it had something to do with my grandmother's death when I was 12.

One day, instead of my dad picking me up from school, I received a call from the front office that I'd have to go to after-care instead, which I dreaded with a deep-seated passion. You have to remember this was before cell phones were prevalent, so there was no way I could get in touch with my parents at a moment's notice.

A little while later, my dad picked me up and instead of taking the highway home, we made a detour at my grandparents' house. And when we turned the corner and I saw the ambulance parked outside of their row home, I knew immediately that she had died (she had been battling Alzheimer's for a year or so) and erupted into tears.

Now, when something veers from my normal routine, I find myself getting anxious. I'm a creature of habit, through and through. One look at my food log and you'll notice I eat the same thing for breakfast every day. I typically take the same route to work every morning. It's my way of maintaining control over my world.

So when my husband Jeff and I moved into our new home last weekend and we ventured to our new neighborhood market for the first time, I damn near had a meltdown. It wasn't my market. I didn't know where anything was. It was crowded and small and I was starting to feel claustrophobic.

We ended up buying only a few items before I had to get out of there. As we were walking back home, Jeff asked me why I'd expected to be good at something the first time? And I sighed, "Because that's what I do, that's what I've always done."

But again, as we say at OneGoal, I have to extend myself grace. Change isn't easy, and I can't expect myself to adapt overnight.

Love,
L'Oreal

IRL

Here's where you can catch me this fall:

Sept. 13, Chicago: FWD Collective Summit (Early Bird pricing end today!)

Oct. 21, Chicago: Speak Truth Summit

Links I Love

My Latest Obsession

Yes, yes, I know I'm tardy to the Hamilton party. But Jeff and I saw it for the first time last night to celebrate his birthday and all I can say is "WOW!" I get it now, I understand the hype -- it was well deserved.

Everything from the lyrics to the casting to the costumes and choreography ... it's such a beautiful thing to witness people living in their truths and living out their art.

As a writer, I'm in awe of Lin-Manuel Miranda's creative genius and, admittedly (selfishly?), I wonder what will be my Hamilton -- my piece of art that makes the world stop and take notice.

But, as Jeff so kindly reminded me, Lin-Manuel had other credits to his name before Hamilton. Lesson learned: Do the work. Trust the process. Enjoy the (creative) journey.

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