“…i suspect the future will be shaped by all that we are feeling in the present. i believe that asking each other for help is self-love, and answering honestly is self-love, and giving what we can is community love. and love is what will reshape the pattern of humanity. even through the tears, i know that…” adrienne maree brown
I am thinking of you today as 2021 is drawing to a close. It has been another hard year here on planet earth. I have been so grateful to have all of you to talk with. When life has felt lonely or mildly catastrophic, there was always you, my peeps, my bloggEEs, my friends.
So, it is a good time to share some resources I use that might help you in the coming year and beyond.
Creating a Better World
When you have a rainforest mind, you are naturally drawn to finding ways to make a positive impact in both your personal life and in the larger spheres. Right now, I am reading and following: Resmaa Menakem, Van Jones, (racism, justice) Kim Nicholas, Gen Dread, Emma Watson, adrienne maree brown (climate crisis, vision/change), the evolutionary collective: Patricia Albere, (transformation, evolution, unity)
Inner Work
You know I am a big believer in introspection. Doing your inner work is one powerful way to heal yourself and your family and to have an impact on the larger human interconnected web. There is psychotherapy. A list of practitioners in the US who understand giftedness is here. If you do not want or need therapy or can not find a good match, there are these excellent self-help books the come with journaling guides: Glennon Doyle, Untamed, Get Untamed: The Journal; Lori Gottlieb, Maybe You Should Talk To Someone, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: The Workbook.
Memoirs, Novels, Stories, Podcasts, Movies
Of course, as a therapist, I love to read memoirs. The memoirs I am reading are Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad, Smile by Sarah Ruhl, and Unbound by Tarana Burke. I don’t have suggestions right now in the other categories but hope you will fill those in when you comment below!
Music, Dance, Joy
How could we get through life without music? I used to be a corny Broadway musicals kind of person. I still am. But these days I am soothed by Josh Groban and Dougie MacLean and energized by Pink. This year, I am taking an online singing class with two Australian musician brothers who are big-hearted beautiful humans. The Brothers Koren. This song is theirs: The Joy Generation. I recommend a daily practice of this song, with free-range dancing included.
What else?
For a welcoming and productive community of multipotentialites: Join the Puttyverse.
To find other rainforest minds (until it’s safe to tango) look for a silent book club in your town or start one.
If you are a parent of a gifted child and want to connect with other parents, explore GHF Learners.
If you want to learn more about twice exceptionality, contact Julie Skolnick (kids and adults) or Debbie Steinberg-Kuntz (kids) or Summit Center.
And most of all, remember to sing, dance, and look for (and create) the joy.
“We dance and we love. We dance and we feel. We dance and we play. We dance and we heal. We open our eyes. We reach for the sun. We dance to be joy. We dance to be one. We are the joy generation.” the Brothers Koren
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To my bloggEEs: What are the books, podcasts, websites, people, music, and other resources that are helping you manage the stressful, tumultuous issues of our times and that help you find hope, inspiration, action, and direction? And, thank you, thank you, thank you.
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