Into the Living Room: Behind-the-Scenes of a Lifelong Learner

A love letter to my younger self. 

On our road trip out to our new home, I started thinking about the idea that life is messy. And, the more I thought about it, the better I felt. Then, I met author Michael A. Singer, and it all started to make sense. 

My family and I are settling into our new digs (new city, new state, new job, new preschool). It's been a lot, but after three months in our new home, we finally feel like we are finding our footing. Bit by bit, drop by drop, we are making it work. 

We jumped—and it has turned out to be one of the bigger jumps of my life. I've always been one who is up for the ride, but for this ride I've really had to buckle-up.

I have moved a lot in my life, and I’ve changed jobs before, but for some reason moving with my husband and son has completely put a different kind of spin on everything—a spin that has not stopped, where I still feel like I am hovering above our new life. I look down and see all the pieces and players moving around, but I am a bit disconnected from it all.

Here's to new adventures!

I love big cities and I love small towns. I see the benefits of both. What is best for my son? What is best for my family? What is best for me? I explore this and more in Episode 12—Small Town vs. Big City.

Recorded at a local diner, I realize it is not about the search, but about the living. 

The backdrop of my life has been muted by the recent world events. I had a planned a different theme for this episode, but after what happened last week in Orlando, my thoughts and heart have been focused only there. At times like these, I recall a speech I heard at the Academy Awards by a woman named Gerda Weissman Klein. It has stayed with me forever. 

For me, I know when life gets extremely busy—too busy where my priorities get out of whack—I am the only one to blame. I set my own priorities, and it is my responsibility to protect those priorities. In Episode 9, Turn Your Brain Off For Awhile, I own up to neglecting to pay attention to my priorities, and after I bomb a live interview at a conference I was invited to participate in, I become determined to get passed my issue of public speaking. 

Can you imagine learning at two years old, that you have the power within yourself to be happy?

I want to teach my son this.

In Episode 8, Show Up (Even Without Your Shoes) I revisit balance in my life and how I continue to struggle with what's most important to do each moment and also, when it is just as important to do nothing at all.

We are all trying to figure it out, we are all doing the best we know how to do, we’re not perfect, no one is, but isn’t our best foot forward enough? Isn’t it enough to just show up? I say yes it is.

I've always been intrigued with the big questions in life. Why are we here? What happens when we die? Do we all have a purpose? In Episode 7, Life's Big Questions, I explore these questions with individuals who have already lived a full life. I also give an update on my health and fitness, and socializing my son.