In These TRYing Times… What Shall We TRY?

In These TRYing Times… What Shall We TRY?

I’d like to share these words from Abigail Adams, sometimes referred to as America’s First Feminist:

“It is not in the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties. Great necessities call out great virtues. When a mind is raised, and animated by scenes that engage the heart, then those qualities which would otherwise lay dormant, wake into life and form the character of the hero...”

My client the other night radiates such virtues. With a new pacemaker supporting her inner rhythm, she so wants to be of hearty service to others… and she’s exploring ways to do that.  

During our circles I am struck by the profound capacity of those who confront their own daily pain to include others in their compassion and presence.

It’s extraordinary to me how death of someone we love – or our own intimate brush with mortality – can, at times, evoke from us the deepest appreciation of life and love and this day… this NOW… being sacred and having its own beauty.

It was assuredly my own brush with near death from disease that utterly changed my approach to life, too.

During those past TRYing times, I needed to learn to TRY more and “know” less.

That feels so true today, too.

I thought I knew how business worked, and it did… until it didn’t anymore.

I was outwardly more “successful” than my parents, yet I was getting so depleted of emotional energy. It was both unsustainable and HARD to consider changing.

Crisis – TRYING times – have a way of forcing an opportunity to consider one’s life afresh. It’s an OUCH, for sure. And also holds the potential for an…

Ahhhhhh. YES! That! Let’s Try THAT!

And yeah, I remember sometimes feeling “It’s not like I have any other choice!” I’m noticing people asking for help that have never “had” to ask for help before. It’s humbling, for sure, and also opening. Humility isn’t a toxin. It reminds us of our humanity and that we share both this physical and emotional world together.

My invitation is for us to consider our emotional world more deeply during these times.

What is it that helps us feel EMOTIONALLY rich and nourished?

How might each of us individually re-fashion our efforts… and life flow… to bring more emotional strength and resilience? 

What as a community can we TRY during these times that supports the emotional well-being of a few other people, both inside and outside our home?

Social distancing doesn’t actually require emotional distancing. Indeed, I feel strongly that it is a time for us to be more emotionally connected in nourishing ways together.

I just love that one of my partner’s friends gifted us all rainbow masks to wear together as a family.

Another friend pointed me to leveler.info which made is easy for me to donate individually to people who are open to help. I also upped my Patreon contribution to Elle Erickson of the non-profit Booth Fairy Project to honor her co-creative work in going from physical Free Hugs to Free (Air) Hugs and Kindness signs and more.

How do you feel drawn to support what matters to your heart?

On the business side, with the support of the Thriving Now community (of which you are a part), we’re TRYing ways to bring even more generous encouragement to those who need a gift of emotional support. It feels so good to me… it’s my intention to continue these long after this pandemic passes.

We’re in this NOW together. There are things we’re all needing to do just to cope with what we currently have to do (and not do).

Are these giving us any hints as to what we might TRY going forward?

For my partner Jem and me, our time at home has meant trying new ways of scheduling that fit our energy flow. And it’s working, pretty much J, to give us both time and space to drop into our work… while also homeschooling and living-in-connection (and surprising ease most days) with The Boy with the French Braids.

Yeah, when more freedom of movement and physical connection returns, we’ll extend our “reach” and consciously craft our emotional world around families and rich and deep kinships that matter in work and life. Yet, “forced” into home isolation has shown us the YES to homeschool this coming school year AND shown us vividly the cravings from missing being in person with those dearest to us. This is especially true with a baby girl on the way in October.

Even while we do our best to Keep It Super Simple, we can Adapt… Explore… Dance with some new possibilities and patterns... and TRY during these TRYing times.

We can also honor our soul cravings that are unmet right now and devote ourselves to being intentional in trying new ways of meeting those desires as things change.

As Abigail Adams said: “Animated by scenes that engage the heart, then those qualities which would otherwise lay dormant, wake into life!”

May that be our lived truth, Together… Now and Always.