Soft Chewy Center

Me at three

  When I was four I asked my mom’s boyfriend what he thought
  about death.  I guess I scared off a few of those guys, because Mom
  didn’t remarry until I was 11! Good thing because I loved my
  stepdad and he could handle the questions. Someone dear to me is
  facing the cancer journey and death is on my mind again. The
  thing about remembering my impermanence is that it keeps me in
  touch with my soft chewy center. We have a tendency to grow hard
  shells of protection, which may serve to get us through the day,
  especially in a culture that does not encourage us to express our
  deeper emotions.  I happen to be lucky, because as a counselor I get
  to be in touch with my soft chewy center all day long. In the heart space connection is welcome. Granted, it’s not always comfortable. Our tendency is to want to fix it - make the feeling or behavior go away. We ask (ourselves and others): “Why did you do that? Why can't I get this right?” But it’s not the “why’s” that help us, but the “what’s.”

“What’s going on right now?” “What are you feeling?” “Tell me what this brings up for you?”

Hwy 93

Part of the reason people avoid emotion is because the first thing that comes up is anger. You’ll see this on the road. There is a sense that if we let our feelings out, we will lose control, or things won't get accomplished. I hear my inner critic that I call Nasty: “Buck up. Pull it together. You should be so much farther along by now. There’s no time for contemplation. It’s time to ACT.” Nothing is really wrong with these statements, but the trouble is that when we power past deeper emotions that hold us trapped and stuck – it’s like we’re a fly pinned to a board at the thorax and flapping our wings.

The fields of Niwot

  Underneath the anger is a frightened
  child asking to be given voice, to be acknowledged in a world that is quick
  to give an answer and shut us down. The sad and scared child gets fed up
  and ends up stuck in a perpetual road rage tantrum. When the child is seen
  and heard and healed, she can focus and charge ahead, accomplishing
  goals in half the time because she is not hauling around a heavy board.

  Asking our emotions to stay put in the corner is like asking a two year old
  to sit still in a toy store; they’re bound to act out – whether it comes out as
  angry driving or body pain. It’s a lot easier to access these feelings in the
  presence of a loving witness – a counselor or coach trained in techniques
  that will help you not only feel, but also to calm down and heal. The more
  issues from the past clear out, the more resourced your body feels, which allows blood flow to the thinking brain and  decreases explosive outbursts.

A soft chewy center invites profound joy and deep connection with others.

Life in the Mystical Middle

There are no accidents. When we get out of our way and open to the possibilities outside of ourselves, the universe responds. Sometimes we miss the signs, but eyes wide open we will be led.

One of my favorite coincidences was the time in graduate school that I was required to choose a favorite author and a topic and speak to it for 30 minutes. I am a huge fan of the magical realism of Isabel Allende (Eva Luna and The House of Spirits - also a great movie by the way), probably because my life has been so blessed with synchronicity - full of wonder, occasionally strange and seemingly impossible. I decided to address the differences between fantasy, surrealism and magical realism.

I was walking down the hall at University of Colorado when I ran into a classmate. She asked me how I was doing and I told her about my report due the following day. “Isabel Allende is speaking at the Tattered Cover in Denver tonight!” she informed me. I couldn’t believe my luck! I had no idea!

When I arrived at the renowned bookstore, people were already pouring outside of the crowded room. I don’t know why but I impulsively plowed a path through the mass. Stepping over people: Excuse me. Oh sorry! I managed enter the room, stopped at the end of the open aisle. At that exact moment an elderly woman on the aisle of the 3^rd row turned and motioned to me with her index finger to approach her.