Feeling lucky

What a great week at work! I have been in  New York facilitating a development experience for a class of new executives. I love the opportunity to be a part of this! I was inspired by our company leadership. I met my current vice president (I report into our HR/Talent organization) and saw my 2nd line manager (head of learning/training). I spent 3 days with a group of the company’s newest executives and heard their inspiring stories and amazing ideas. I did something I love – helping others succeed and facilitating discovery and learning. I was with a group of colleagues in person – many who I met for the first time, although we’ve known each other for years. I got outside on the beautiful learning center campus. I’ll head home tomorrow fulfilled and grateful for this abundantly delicious job that enriches my life.

Facilitating leadership

courtesy of http://www.likeateam.com

This week I’m in Armonk, New York as part of a team of facilitators supporting a group of new executives in discovering who they are, what they have the power to create, and actions they’ll commit to in order to make a difference. I feel so fortunate to be a part of this amazing experience, to have the support of my manager and my team as I step away from my ‘day job’ for a few days as well as the encouragement of my husband, my family and friends, to be able to use my strengths and do something I love, to grow and make discoveries as I help others grow and make discoveries. What a gift! I love this abundantly delicious life.

As I think about tomorrow and creating an experience with the participants, I envision being in flow, dancing with my team facilitator, and our being conductors, like music makers. I liked the image of the room in this facilitator graphic – doesn’t it look like the room is alive with a sense of adventure, purpose, energy, and creativity?

Con’grad’ulations

Jim and I had a great weekend in Chicago for my friend Peg’s graduation. She got her Bachelor’s of Arts in Management from Loyola’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies yesterday. In typical Peg style, she not only graduated Magna Cum Laude, she was also selected to give a speech as part of the commencement ceremony. She spoke eloquently of self-awareness, change and transformation. I was so honored to be there among her beautiful family on this wonderful occasion.

Since I’ve known Peg she has looked deep within herself for answers to life’s most important decisions, and followed her heart. It’s one of the many things I love about her (others include her fun-loving spirit, her determination, her clarity about what she wants). Peg and I met when we were 15 running cross-country for Gar-Field High School in Dale City, VA. Seems we may have occasion to run together again – Peg’s next big ambition is to complete a marathon before she turns 50.

Celebrating you, my friend!  I love you, Peg.

~~~

When I read this inspirational post this evening, I thought of Peg and her commencement speech. No coincidences that she’s the one who introduced me to Higher Awareness many years ago!

Living in the Moment

courtesy of http://darksideoftheblues.deviantart.com

Blogging is an amazing thing…it brings so many abundantly delicious things into my life. I posted a piece on Flow over at Leading With Intention and in response someone told me that the blog post and a song called “Living in the Moment” by Jason Mraz from the album “LOVE”  speak to her in much the same way. Well, I had never heard of this artist or this song so I went on over and WOW!  The song has so much energy and makes me feel alive. Love it!

To hear Jasan Mraz sing Living in the Moment, go here.

Find the lyrics for Living in the Moment here.

 

Slow down anniversary

Today marks the 8-year anniversary of my consciously choosing to SLOW DOWN. I remember the morning of May 9, 2005 like it was yesterday. I was headed to New Orleans for a business meeting. I was running around the house tying up lose ends. I remember thinking it would be nice to have my email all caught up before heading to the airport so I sat down, rushed.  More in the inbox than I expected…I kept saying to myself “Oh, just this one more…” And, then, in a flash – a hurried, thought-less email response – I was duped! I responded to an email from my credit union with information I should have known not to share. Back then, I didn’t know what phishing was. I certainly do now. I also know a lot more about credit reports, about creating passwords and protecting private information.

As always, the Universe was watching out for me. For some reason, I decided to call my mom just to touch base at the airport. And, for some reason, I told her about this email. (I guess unconsciously I knew there was something odd about it.) Well, she is smarter than me and knew that I had been caught by someone out phishing. Because my Mom is an awesome woman, she knew just what to do. She suggested several actions I should take. I immediately called my credit card company to cancel credit card (thankfully, I had a separate business card to use for my trip.)

Needless to say, I was shaken. The event was like an electric jolt. I was really, really clear that I needed to slow down. One stupid move could have such huge implications. Lucky for me, nothing became of the incident – mostly, I think because of my intuition to call Mom and acting quickly.

So on this abundantly delicious day, I am grateful for Mom, for all that I have learned, and mostly for the invitation to slow down. Over the years I have grown to understand that sense of time and how I use it is something that I shape, and there is always enough for what’s important. Knowing what the important stuff is, however, requires being awake and going slow enough to think and feel in the moment.

A little gift to self

On this beautifully inspiring spring day, I got out of my office for a mid-day break…enjoyed a wonderful lunch with a couple of girl friends and then headed to downtown Iowa City to buy tickets at The Englert Theater for Brandi Carlyle (she’s here on July 5th!) and to get a graduation gift for my friend at the Iowa Artisan’s Gallery. So many wonderful hand made treasures in the gallery…I found the gift I was looking for – and more! I decided that a lovely oversize ceramic mug had my name on it. Lovely and practical – now I won’t have to refill my coffee in the morning! Some days a girl just needs to treat herself to something special! 

First Spring Bike Ride

Today was the perfect day to bring the bike up from the basement and ride to the gym. Blue skies and sunshine, temps in the low 70s, light breeze.  I started a poem last summer when I bought my new 15-speeder…This excerpt seems fitting today:

Riding
By Vicki L. Flaherty, 5/6/13

I put my feet on the pedals.
I gather my energy.
I begin to move gently forward.
My legs are strong.
My body is balanced.
I float down the path.
Flowing and free.

I coast the down hills.
The breeze graces my skin.
I feel very, very alive.
I sail past the parks and people,
and all the every day things.
I could go like this forever,
joy filling my soul.

Goldfinches arrive

Today as I was making my morning coffee, I saw a goldfinch couple on the thistle sock feeder! I’ve been waiting for them. For the past couple of weeks, the chickadees and house finches have been making sure that everything’s in working order for them.

It was a beautiful spring day here so naturally I spent most of my time outside in the yard. As I moved all the potted plants back to their designated places on the deck (I had huddled them up next to the house or brought them inside because of last week’s cold snap), I could hear the finches talking to each other, along with all the other neighborhood birds.

Golden paradise!

AND

Oh, what a powerful and wonderful word – AND.

Thank goodness so many things are not either/or…

What if there were only darkness, war, death, illness, injury, hate, ugliness, poverty, scarcity, hunger, brokenness, anger, discouragement…

Today I am grateful for the & that complements with light, peace, life, health, recovery, love, beauty, riches, abundance, nourishment, wholeness, joy, hope…

It’s been said that to fully appreciate all the glorious and amazing things in life, we must have something to contrast them against…without darkness there can be no light. A wise friend of mine believes that all of the things we might categorize as ‘negative’ – those things that we don’t understand or don’t like, or that we want to be different or go away – are needed to help us understand and appreciate what we have. Intuitively, this feels true. Even so, I very often find myself pushing away the adverse. That, too, comes with & because the toughness of pushing against adversity is so often met with softness and moments of blissful appreciation for all of life’s beauty and wonder.

April blessings, May possibilities

I pause in gratitude for all the blessings of April.

I sit quietly in anticipation of all the possibility in May.

It it spring, and that makes me happy.

Today is for planting the seeds of my joy.

 

Spring

By Vicki L. Flaherty

The seed,
seeking nourishment,
finds richness surrounding it and
takes inspiration from the light above.

The seedling,
breaking free,
stretches toward the sky and
shows its greatness to the world.

The stem,
taking shape,
expands into the openness and
develops powerfully each day.

The blossom,
flowering to magnificence,
touches the world with its vibrancy and
shapes the beauty that is life.