Love Heals

It was the summer before I headed for UNT in Denton, and we both needed a little time off before I started the grind of graduate school.  We packed up the bed of my old green pickup with camping gear, food supplies and clothing then covered it with a blue tarp.  The drive was challenging since the truck had bad shocks, and did not have power steering or an air conditioner, but we were young, on an adventure, and in love.  Carlsbad Caverns, Mesa Verde, and Royal Gorge are some of my camping memories as we wandered through New Mexico and Colorado.  It was a wet summer and all our gear stayed wet, finally forcing us to turn around and head home.  That summer I replaced memories of too many horrific medivac rides, and the trauma of my broken back with moments of cotton candy clouds, lava flow sunsets, and wrapped in the deep healing arms of love.  Let go and love…….

Light Up Your Heart

Harry Gibbs memorial service was on Saturday, led by Chaplains Gail Kennebrew and Stephen Findley, and attended by many of his friends and co-workers from MD Anderson.  Harry was 6’7”, a cardiologist and Chief Diversity Officer, but what made him special was the way he cared about others and life. 

One of my morning rituals was to walk down his hallway in hopes of catching him, for Harry and I shared cancer journeys.  We would talk briefly and before I walked away, he would reach down and place his hand on my shoulder, no words, just an expression of caring and love.  I longed for his touch this morning, for love touches us at our core and opens our hearts to life’s goodness even in suffering.  Nepo writes, “There is no substitute for going through things together” for it is through caring we learn the power of presence that lights up our hearts and lives.  Give someone a caring “touch” today and light up your heart!

Rainbow Feathers

When was the last time you saw a rainbow?  Many believe that these magical arcs of color spread across the sky at times when our hearts need a touch of life energy filled with liquid love.  A friend gave me rainbow feathers for Christmas, and each day as I pass through my office door I feel their gentle touch.  A touch that reminds me of the spiritual freedom and grace I receive each day as I live my life as a gift.  Do you have any rainbow feathers in your life?                                

   

Being Home

The ocean has always felt like home and I have no doubt the “being home” feeling grew from my trip as a newborn on a huge ship that took my family to Japan to be with my dad who was part of the occupation force after WWII.  The constant motion of the waves crashing into or gently caressing the shore and the pulling and pushing of underwater currents remind me of the emotional / spiritual challenges I feel deep inside every day.  As an old goofy foot surfer, I loved the feeling of being “one with the wave” and now with my daily cancer journey, I do best when I am one with myself or what I call being home.  A big part of being home is being present to all our feelings, to others, and the constant goodness of life that surrounds us.  Practice “being home”!

Why am I here?

Yesterday got tough after I spoke with one of my coaching clients about their Christmas and learned of a family tragedy that had occurred during the holidays.  All day I felt the tears as I thought about how unfair and hard life can be.  Turning in our driveway after a Tuesday date night supper I caught a quick glance of a large dark cat darting between cars on the parking lot across the street.  I immediately thought it might be Sweet Boy, our Norwegian Forest cat that disappeared last year, but it wasn’t.   

Thinking of Sweet Boy reminded me of his long soft fur, his high pitched meow, deep purr, and tender moments he and I shared.  Slowly my sadness moved off as I thought about other tender moments I’ve shared, like the golden sunsets when all the goodness in the universe paints the sky.  Or walking through a sea of wildflowers and feeling their smiles as they are gently kissed by the morning dew.  Our life memory moments affect how we see the world, how we treat the world, how we treat others and ourselves.  Why am I here?  For me today, it’s all about creating and sharing more tender memory moments “we” can recall on those days when life becomes unfair and hard, and we’ve lost hope.  

Engagement

Yesterday afternoon, as MaryBeth and I played with our grandkids I was reminded how hard we must work to fully engage ourselves and employees in wellness.  We first played with a box of multicolored frisbee’s  going from partner toss to a game of tossing the frisbee into a laundry basket.  They quickly lost interest as the frisbee toss games became too complicated (baby steps in wellness builds engagement), so we moved to hockey sticks and brooms with an upside down frisbee as the puck.  The oldest grandson got more engaged in broom hockey and started making up the rules (engagement takes ownership), which caught the attention of his younger brother, who began playing even harder.  I found a plastic bat and ball in the garage and for a short time we had a batter and pitcher, but our baseball game didn’t last long for it only involved two players and got boring quick (wellness engagement happens by meeting our needs and interest).  Next I dumped a backpack full of small rubber balls onto the driveway and Auggie, our dog, went wild chasing the grandkids and balls.  What fun!  Yes, fun and celebration are important ingredients of wellness engagement.   When it was almost time to break up the fun I brought out my old cornet I played in high school.  With MaryBeth’s help (professional support is great, but peer support is critical for engagement), our youngest grandson blew what sounded like Jingle Bells and became mesmerized by the different sounds he could make.  How will you successfully ENGAGE yourself or your employees this year in being well?

Step into 2016

Who have you become, and where are you going, and how will you be the best you in 2016?  This past week the January issue of Workforce: Business & Strategy and Management journal featured me as their profile piece.  They interviewed me about two months ago and sent a photographer to take pictures at my favorite places around MD Anderson.  Each time I read the profile I smile at a few errors, like I was 5 when my mom was diagnosed with colon cancer not her, and I tried hard to get assigned to an airborne unit in my Army tour, but never got released from my MP duties protecting nuclear weapons.  I also feel the tears as I read and go back to medivac rides where I held dying soldiers in my arms, and breaking my back after my Army tour in a freak car accident that changed where life would take me.  When I think about who I have become I can’t help but thank so many others that have helped me stretch and grow.  Bob Patton & Peter Raven at UNT, Dr. Ed Bernacki at Tenneco, and Dr. Georgia Thomas and Paul Kattapong at MD Anderson.  Being my best is getting harder as my daily oral chemo’s challenge my stamina, but I’m learning to better pace myself, and focus on the daily wellness practices that sustain not just my energy, but how I feel about myself.  If you haven’t already, take the time today to consider who you have become, where you are going, and how you will be the best you in 2016.  Then get ready to stretch and grow as you mentor others, and others mentor you.   

Workforce Article