December 10 | Accomplish - This Reverb Prompt is courtesy of The Linar Studios whose Reverbing may be found here.
What are the 10 things I'm most proud of accomplishing this year? What are 10 things on the do list for next year? (I actually wrote several to-do’s that all together will have many sub to do’s so… more than 10….)
- 1. I stuck up for myself. I can think of two such occasions. In the first I labeled it “being a brat and throwing a tantrum” until I deconstructed and reconstructed the episode. In the second I labeled it “A fight with a friend because of an old wound” but after the deconstruction and reconstruction, once again I realize I was sticking up for myself. It is incredible how, even after all the years and all the work I have done, those old patterns, doubts and low self confidence crawl back in, sort of like the fog you don’t notice blowing in.
- 2. I visited three new-to-me National Parks: Zion, The Arches and my favorite, Mesa Verde. The last was actually a lifelong goal I had sort of buried. I love when that happens: my wishes, hopes and dreams from childhood come to life.
- 3. I revisited Canyon de Chelly. The first time I went to this magnificent area, I was pregnant with my first child, Marlena. She was later stillborn. This Summer my eldest living child, Katherine, worked in the Navajo Nation and visited every week. She had yet to see Spider Rock when we went, though, and she was so pleased to do so. I need to return again, sooner.
- 4. I got a new car! I spent a long time rationalizing only buying used. Now I bought new so that I would have a complete warrantee, fewer worries and repair hassles and the ability to ROAD TRIP!
- 5. I hosted a number of lovely couchsurfers. If you don’t know what Couchsurfing is, check out their website. http://www.couchsurfing.org Some of the highlights: two young naturalists who were temporarily locating to the Bakersfield area, a man cycling across the US to visit National Parks (he was actually the inspiration to go to Zion), an Austrian girl who I wanted to “keep” and a young woman from Brooklyn I wanted to keep. I introduced the woman from Brooklyn to a friend from Bakersfield who had moved to Berkeley who was moving to Brooklyn (she has, now) and that was so fun to be a matchmaker friend.
- 6. I lived through my melanoma surgery. Oh, and I took action about the growth on my face. I felt foolish going into my doctor because I was sure it was nothing. It wasn’t nothing. It was a dangerous something. The recovery has been complicated, but I know now “I can do it.”
- I emceed a couple cabaret shows. Successfully! The audiences actually liked me! Emceeing/hosting is something I could do for others as well. Reminds me of when I had my radio show. I can improve and make conversation (hopefully funny!) most of the time. I am grateful I was offered the opportunity AND was allowed – actually, they were thrilled that I would – come back and emcee again.
- I told a story in public that I had never shared with anyone in the past. Yes, in front of an audience. Brave.
- I managed my own post surgery health care following the melanoma surgery. I even put together resources and phone numbers for my caretakers and connected my parents and brother as family members who should be called if anything bad happened. Which it didn’t, but it felt so good to have my friends love me enough to take care of me and follow my wishes for TLC during that time. I ended up staying with my friend for three nights rather than one, but she didn’t even seem to mind.
- I kept going. Even in the darkest days, I kept going. This is the accomplishment I am, in fact, the most proud of in 2012. May it be known as the Year I Kept Going, Even in a Cloud of Darkness.
Accomplishments to Create in 2013
- Primarily: Transforming Back into the Media Diva that I am underneath the “stuff” of the past few years via different modalities of publishing and recording.
- Travel to the Northeast again and perhaps the Northwest. Planning to do Yosemite & more writing camps as well… the latter fits into the Media Diva.
- Audition and perform in some play somewhere somehow scar be damned.
- Continue to grow as a visual artist: window project, women’s sphere project, word-love project
- Strengthen existing relationships and mend ones that are important to me but need tending.
- Continue to work on healing both my “actual” wounds and my soul wounds. Remember that when I am vulnerable my soul wounds rise closer to the surface. Be more mindful.
