Looking you in the eye

The past week was challenging. Energy was low; connections were crossed; items were incomplete. I checked to see if mercury was in retrograde. It wasn’t. I wondered if I got up on the wrong side of the bed. There is only one side to get up from my bed. I thought about moving to Australia. I would have been with myself in Australia as well.

Friday evening, I had a dinner of the Women’s Law Section of the Montana Bar to attend in Missoula. It’s a two-hour drive, and I usually look forward to it. On Friday afternoon, I wasn’t looking forward to anything. And guess what? It was raining ~ ugly nasty rain. For the first twenty miles, I was talking myself into and out of making the trip. I was tired. I was crabby. I didn’t want anyone to see me that way. And as the vice-chair of the WLS, I felt it my duty to be at the event. It was a long, long twenty miles.

During my drive, I grew weary of myself. Pouting, suffering, struggling … I was wasting my own life and time. So I got in communication. I called someone who could listen and started talking. I don’t really recall what I said. I do recall that it became clear that I was sacrificing my sense of humor, my energy, my relationships, and my love of people and life in exchange for the ‘opportunity’ to pout. And it also became clear that the price was far higher than I was willing to pay. I was suffering because I didn’t get to spend time with people. And the price I was paying was not spending time with people. Ironic, huh?

I took on being open, welcoming, and willing to look you in the eye. That gave me a new place to be for the remaining one hundred miles and the dinner that evening.

When I invent something new that works, a miracle occurs. At dinner, I stood at the welcoming table, visiting with women lawyer and law students. I looked at them ~ in the eye. And at dinner, I won the limerick contest, a gift of Aveda products ~ my favorites! While that was a miracle, it was not the biggest miracle. It was a bonus. The biggest miracle is I spoke with the dean of the UM Law School about Laughter Yoga and offered to do an in-service for the law school faculty. Guess what? She’s done Laughter Yoga!! She loves it! And she wants me to come to the law school and offer Laughter Yoga!!

On my drive home, I started to listen to Arianna Huffington’s latest book, “Thrive.” What a blessed coincidence that the book was suggested to me on Thursday ~ and that I listened. Much of what I heard in the first two hours of the book addresses directly the approach I have for life ~ to be driven by something beyond a thirst (may I say FORCE?) for power or money.

Saturday, the miracles continued. I officiated the pole vault for the high school track meet and got to watch 22 young men launch their dreams. And I looked each of them in the eyes when they checked in. As I was carrying my coat to the car, I felt something in the pocket. I reached in to find the $200 spare key to my Jeep ~ a key that has been missing for nearly a year ~ since the last track season! Miracles!

While I was eating lunch, I got a call from my friend Anne with whom I have not talked for a few months. We had a chance to share, laugh, cry a little, and catch up on each other. I felt like I was looking in her eyes as I talked with her.

Finally, today, I spoke with a friend who is gathering artwork for the ‘gallery’ at her offices in the Physical Therapy Center at St. James Hospital. She asked if I would be willing to show some of my icicle photos taken during February and March from the alley behind my apartment. Elated? Stunned? Giddy? Yes! All of the above. When I asked for suggestions on which photo to share, she asked if I would share several! And when I posted the news in my Facebook page, folks asked if the pieces were for sale. I can’t stop smiling!

How many miracles in 48 hours? Limerick winner, Aveda gift, laughing dean, Thrive, vaulters, found key, phone call, ‘acclaimed’ artist.  Eight, Not bad ~ not bad at all.

So here’s to being open, welcoming, and willing to look you in the eye!Image