Archives for March 2019 | Let My Legacy Be Love

I know I promised to begin delving into vulnerability as it relates to guilt and shame, but something came up this past weekend that I wanted to share.

I had a wonderful experience at the Mind, Body, Soul Expo held in Saratoga Springs on Saturday. The place was packed all day long with over four thousand people searching to find ways of feeling better physically, emotionally, mentally and/or spiritually. During the expo, I had the opportunity to speak with many, many people who stopped by my booth. If only there were twelve of me, I would have been able to speak to everyone who came by!

Because I deal with a difficult topic, it was both exhilarating and validating to realize how many people are willing to learn more about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and how they might heal the lingering effects of negative childhood experiences. Over and over expo-goers ran their finger over the sub-title of my book Let My Legacy Be Love, and said, “Tracing adult issues to childhood hurts. I know all about that.” Of course, as usual, all of this got me thinking.

Defining Understanding

I started with the Merriam-Webster to find the dictionary definition of “understanding.” When used as a noun, understanding means comprehension. When used as an adjective, it means to be tolerant and forgiving. This struck me as significant. I mean, stop and think about that for just a moment. Through comprehending/understanding a situation or person, you become tolerant and forgiving. What a wonderful gift not only to yourself but to everyone around you!

How Do You Get to Understanding?

From my experience, I believe that understanding is […]

Vulnerability: A Dirty Word or a Life Changer?

While I was out with my dog, Kye, for a walk this morning, I had a thought, but first I have to confess that March has always been a bit challenging for me. In fact, it’s begun to feel like the cold and damp will never end, and to make it worse, I developed a drippy, stuffy cold. I’ve noticed that as human beings, when we don’t feel well, we can become vulnerable to the voices in our heads—the same voices we would laugh at when we are feeling healthy and balanced. As I struggled against the voices in my head and thought about how vulnerable I was feeling, it occurred to me what I want to share with you today.

I’m going to back up to 2011 for just a moment where I was hanging from the end of my rapidly fraying rope. Just in the nick of time, a friend introduced me to the work of Brene Brown. If you are not familiar with Brene, which I was not at the time, she is a research professor who has become well-known for her work on the topics of shame, vulnerability and courage. By the time I finished watching her TED talk for the first time, it was obvious to me what I needed to do. If I was going to move forward and heal, I needed to be as honest and real with myself as Brene is in her presentation, AND I needed to be open and vulnerable with those I loved. I needed to change.

This Brene Brown video on vulnerability is twenty minutes, and fully worth every second.

I can honestly say that the […]

Monthly Archives: March 2019

Understanding Brings Compassion

Vulnerability: A Dirty Word or a Life Changer?