White House Summit Working Families

In June the White House hosted a Summit on Working Families.  As I talk to our employees and visit other employers it is evident that the work-life challenges are more intense.  Most kids now grow up in households where all parents work.  Women and men are both struggling to meet their work and family responsibilities and many workplaces have not kept up with their work flexibility and access to leave needs.  The sandwich generation is being squeezed more by grown kids who can’t find work and eldercare, which result in high stress, obesity, and unhealthy lifestyle choices.  This is not about balancing work life and home life, but about having the energy to be effective at both.  Energy gained and maintained through daily wellness practices. 

Louisiana Community Coffee Moment

I’ve always been an early riser and have fond memories of the Louisiana Community coffee smell as I made my way through our kitchen to find my mom who was usually sitting by the glass sliding doors at the back of the house watching the birds.  Mornings in Chile were special because of a family of pigeons that perched on vines across from our balcony.  I’d watch as they’d walk across the vines picking up breakfast along the way, but it was their cooing and its calming and centering effect that brought me to our balcony each morning.  How do you start your day?  Consider slowing down and taking a few moments to pause, creating a centering moment filled with gratitude and intention to being present.    

Palemo Soho

Buenos Aires was experiencing a week of mild weather with crystal clear skies.  Our hotel was in a neighborhood called Palemo Soho which is known for its cafes, restaurants, and alternative street culture.  We had arrived on a 3-day holiday, being celebrated with street musicians, and festive outdoor markets.  The first morning, as I tried to find my way back to the hotel, I quickly got lost in music that was everywhere, and streets painted in multiple colors.  There are times in our lives we need to get lost, break away from life patterns that have kept us from inhabiting the story of our days.  Life’s not so much about intensity, but about intention and mindfulness.  Get lost today. 

Recoleta Cemetery – Who’s to Say

Lots of memory moments on our Buenos Aires trip and one was a walk through the Recoleta cemetery, one of the world’s most extraordinary graveyards.  It was the mausoleum of a 26-year old that died on her honeymoon in an avalanche in Austria that struck my heart.  She stands as a bronze statue in her wedding dress outside her tomb with her dog.  But what stole my heart was the cat that our guide told us can be found most days at the foot of the statue.  Just a graveyard cat who has found a sunny spot?  Who’s to say, but I know for me as I lightly petted his ears his contentment and love was real.  Things death can’t even take away. 

Life-Songs

Last week my morning readings were taken out of Nipo’s, Book of Awakening, and day after day it opened to page 291- Growing Inside the Song.  The reading started with a poem by Emerson, “What lies behind us / and what lies before us / are tiny matters / compared to / what lies within us.”  I worked at its meaning all week without much progress, until today as I read an email about Peggy’s death last week, less than two weeks after her cancer diagnosis.  Now the words have meaning as I feel Peggy’s gift she left inside of all of us, touched by her specialness. Peggy served as Manager of the CEO Cancer Gold Standard program and taught us all about the power of believing, patience, and persistence.  Honor the life-song of others growing inside you today.    

South American Tobacco Addiction

My voice resounded with a passion that surprised me; we had walked the streets of Santiago the night before, and were overcome by the number of smokers.  I’d swept my left hand across the audience, stepped to the edge of the stage, and said, “Of the 1 billion smokers of the world, 80% reside in low to medium income countries like Chile, and represent millions of future deaths, years of family hardships dealing with tobacco related chronic disease, and lives made slaves to nicotine addiction.”  I was silent for what felt like a few minutes looking at the audience, watching the faces of understanding and pain.  I could feel the tears on my face and the faces of others as the world burden of tobacco swept across the room.  I wiped my tears, “We have to do better!   We can’t allow tobacco to claim another generation of children and grandchildren, their tobacco free life journeys depend on us!” 

Bolivia Streaked Horizon

We’d boarded at 9pm, sleep was hard, but exhausted I finally dosed off.   I woke as we were crossing the Argentina Bolivia borders and felt a strong pull to open the plane window shutter.  Slowly raising it, instantly a deep reddish orange streak of horizon raced across my view and I was mesmerized by the thought of its energy circling the world.  I’ve experienced this many times before when flying, but each time always feels like a first time, filled with the excitement of watching the birth of a new day above the clouds, touched by the colors of heaven.  Sleeping passengers around me began to stir as the soft rays of morning danced across them.  And I realized it’s the sharing of these moments that make them special.  Share special moments today.