Lyn Carter shares a story on stage at SheSpeaks in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square, Portland, Maine. Building off an ancient story of the Fox and The Star, Lyn's story at this this annual women's storytelling evening, hosted by SheChanges, is about knowing who we are, and where we came from so that we might re-member all the pieces of ourselves—to learn how to put all of our pieces together when it's hard. Her story is entitled: Women's Ways of Knowing.

"That rootedness has helped me in times of my life that were hard—and set me on a journey. ...and while I don't have any magic wand, I know that my next steps are to work to empower women as the best that we can, and go back and reach those stories...bring them forward into modern day, and start to create a picture. I want stories that I can tell my grandchildren that are ours, and all of yours as well."

- Lyn Carter, SheSpeaks 2018

http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo Credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Lael Couper Jepson tells a story on stage at her annual women's storytelling series, SheSpeaks, in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine.

Using the Game Of Life board game as a metaphor, Lael talks about the rules we are taught about life—the ones that are generally not ours, nor were they designed with us in mind—only benefit those who are set up to "win." She offers up some new rules she's crafted for herself, borrowing this one from Monica Lewinsky: "No one can tell me I am not a reliable narrator of my own life."

"My relationship with rules has been rather loud, and I've had lots of consequences for that. But I find with every year I live my life...I'm getting louder, which is saying something, because I was loud before..."

- Lael Couper Jepson

FMI: www.shechanges.com/experiences-for…ming-shespeaks/

Photo credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Corinne shares a story on stage at SheSpeaks in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square, Portland, Maine. The story Corinne tells at this this annual women's storytelling evening, hosted by SheChanges, plays at the intersections of motherhood, identity, and creativity. Her story is entitled: Water Witching.

"For all I gained by becoming a mother, there is plenty that I've lost. ...like a big 'ole dump truck full of expectations and anxiety and overwhelm, just fucking unloaded all over who I was...all over my creative source, my creative practice...it just poured it on, packed it tight, and smoothed it over until I no longer recognized the landscape."

- Corinne Mockler, SheSpeaks 2018

Please note: the audio on Corinne's is a bit lower, so you might need to adjust accordingly...

http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo Credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Lael Couper Jepson tells a story on stage at her annual women's storytelling series, SheSpeaks, in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine.

In this story, Lael talks about the "red light moments" of life when the dashboard alerts you something is amiss, and how these are the moments of the unknown where women start to get really resourceful...and busy.

"When the red lights go on on our dash, we reach for the answer as if there is an answer....Intellectually we know there's no owner's manual for living a human life...but there are just so many unknowns...The holy grail is inside us, but so often we reach outside ourselves for the answer..."

- Lael Couper Jepson

FMI: http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Louisa Irele shares her story on stage at SheSpeaks in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square, Portland, Maine. Louisa's story at this annual women's storytelling evening, hosted by SheChanges, is about learning to love yourself and tell yourself that you belong—you deserve to be here—as a means of decide how to be in the world. Especially when you're emotionally busy.

Her story is : My Queendom.

"We can't truly see anybody else's story—we have to have them tell it to us, and we have to be able to hear it and listen to it. My story is important because it says a lot about how I move through space...I spend a lot of time in spaces where it's really, really visually obvious that I'm different...which means that I spend a lot of time in spaces that I exist in thinking that everybody around me is wondering..do I belong..."

- Louisa Irele, SheSpeaks 2018

http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo Credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Lael Couper Jepson tells a story on stage at her annual women's storytelling series, SheSpeaks, in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine.

In this story, Lael speaks to the power of making art as a means to figure herself out:

"I just keep making shit as I go—sometimes it's good shit, and sometimes it's bad shit—but that's how I figure out everything. It's my go-to interface and how I make meaning in my world...and there's no roof on me anymore...I'm just constantly conjuring..."

- Lael Couper Jepson

FMI: http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

Anne Morin shares a story on stage at SheSpeaks in December 2018 at One Longfellow Square, Portland, Maine. As the first speaker of this annual women's storytelling evening, hosted by SheChanges, Anne brought the full house to its feet with her story: Whispers Under The Words.

"After years and years of listening to other people's subtext, and hearing and trying to tease out their truth, and their opinions...I suddenly looked around and realized that I had kind of gone mute to my own opinions, and a little deaf to my own subtext..."

- Anne Morin, SheSpeaks 2018

http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo Credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

An excerpt from Lael Couper Jepson at SheSpeaks 2018, sharing a story at her women's storytelling series at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine. This story bit frames the overall theme for the storytelling series: Sovereign.

"Being sovereign for me, now, isn't about being possessed...it's about being in FULL possession of everything I am, everything I see, everything I feel, everything I know to be true for me."

- Lael Couper Jepson

FMI: http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/shespeaks-womens-speaking-series/upcoming-shespeaks/

Photo credit: Melissa Mullen Photography

In this episode of An Unscripted Woman, I weave together some stories and riff on the themes of the urgency of our times, and how it is calling many of us to speak more clearly (plainly) and get naked with our truth —even if it makes us uncomfortable, is inconvenient, or unpopular. Even if you feel vulnerable and not ready. Even if you're wondering if you're the "right" person for the job. And with all that, I'll also speak to the things women are doing to stay rooted amidst the gale-force winds of these times—so we can stay whole and sane as we are deeply of service.

Links referenced in this episode:

In Her Words w/SheChanges

http://www.shechanges.com/experiences-for-women/in-her-words-5-week-writing-experience/ (please note: this experience is now full for 2019)

Witch Ways: You're Not Crazy, You're a Woman

https://www.gofundme.com/shechanges-book-2-powered-by-women

Layla Saad

https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/

Greta Thunberg at Davos

https://www.theguardian.com/science/video/2019/jan/25/i-want-you-to-panic-16-year-old-greta-thunberg-issues-climate-warning-at-davos-video

A sneak peak, advance sampling of a chapter from Lael Couper Jepson's second book before it was released as Ignite: Lighting the Leader Fire in November of 2019. The original manuscript title was Witch Ways, and this is how it began before it was buffed and polished with revisions, rewrites and many edits.

This is how I Lael, creatively-speaking. I write and then talk it out of my body, with you. So thanks for coming along for the ride. Go ahead, give it a listen...

FMI: check out the story behind how this book is super-powered by women and the SheChanges community

https://www.gofundme.com/shechanges-book-2-powered-by-women