All in a day’s work

Find the shine.

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Do you ever notice that waking up to a sunny day somehow implies it’s also a good day?

Yes, the pull of this positive energy is almost undeniable, isn’t it? It reminds me of our most important of jobs: to find the shine in ourselves. Every day.

What can help us find our shine?

Meditation. Want to try it? Join the Chopra Center’s 21 Day Mediation Challenge starting February 20. It’s free and a fantastic opportunity to experience a global consciousness.

Yoga. This mind-body practice keeps you in touch with what’s going on inside –plus you can get connected to a like-minded community at the studio, too. Mine is Maya Whole Health Studio. Love you guys!

Journaling. I’ve been writing it down ever since I was a young girl. Some like to blog or post or tweet … when I’m journaling, I’m really talking to myself, so I prefer to journal in longhand – try The Artist’s Way.

Music. Listening to it, singing it, playing it. Watching an episode of Glee. I’m very partial to gospel.

The intention is to open our hearts and see what’s really there with clarity. Now, that sounds like the makings of a good day, doesn’t it?

Goddess of creativity.

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The gaming industry really does have some of the coolest job titles around. Consider Narrative Director, Narrative Designer and Narrative Producer. These folks do things like:

-Act as a resource for all things narrative related (this is one of my favorites)

-Write content and edit copy

-Understand story requirements and deliver on ultimate story/script goals

-Responsible for cinematic development

-Proven ability at successful multi-tasking under great pressure

-Teamwork, innovation, attention to detail, diplomacy, unbridled passion

-Ability to work well independently, too; set own schedule and work like a goddess on deadline

Wait a minute … this sounds soooooo familiar.

It appears that the gaming industry has found a fresh way to describe what so many creative types already do. Hmmm.

Fantastic image by Rojer

Happy All-New Year

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Happy New Year, everybody! Ah … after a couple of months away, I find this change refreshing and I’m inspired by it. Why?

Never underestimate the power of New. The most important words in a TV promo, for instance, are no longer time/date/station. They are New Episode. If you’re a fan, that’s what you want to know; if not, you can be with the help of some never-before-seen content. After all, you can watch a television series from all sorts of devices whenever you want to these days. Right?

I’m working on a new project –the reinvention of a brand familiar to the children’s product market. Adding the word new is an elegant, inexpensive way to get the point across instantly that you’re doing something of-the-moment; that a reader/user/fan is looking at something fresh.

Some may argue that new is an over-used concept. Really? New can have an incredibly long shelf life … as long as you’re delivering on the claim.

New is certainly not innovative. But it does deliver a topical call to action to customers that works.

Step by step.

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My sister and her daughter walking the labyrinth at Seattle Center in Seattle WA.

My sister and her daughter walking the labyrinth at Seattle Center.

I’m reading a book called The Handmaid of Desire by John L’Heureux, and in it, main character Olga Kominska pauses most days, asking anyone around her to leave, so she could be alone “to do her thoughts.” When I first read this, I laugh out loud, mostly because I totally relate to her practice –realizing I “do my own thoughts” all the time.

If you’re a thought-doer, it could be very satisfying to change your way of doing thoughts every now and again. Try solving the mystery of a labyrinth.

“A labyrinth is an archetype with which we can have a direct experience. We can walk it. It is a metaphor for life’s journey. It is a symbol that creates a sacred space and place and takes us out of our ego to ‘That Which Is Within,'”  quote Lessons 4 Living.

It’s a beautiful way to do your thoughts, plus it gets you off your ass and away from the computer … something I wholeheartedly support, since sitting all-day-every-day in front of one can silence your -well … your thoughts.

If you’re ever in San Francisco CA, walk the labyrinths of Grace Cathedral. Magnificent. Or visit the World-Wide Labyrinth Locator (love this) and find a labyrinth  in your neck of the woods.

This way, you can do your thoughts with a new twist. Who knows? Perhaps you’ll have an aha moment.

Love the answer.

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At the end of the day, who smiles when you speak to them?

(From the meditation, Fill What is Empty, Empty What is Full, by Davidji)

 Love the answer.

(From my heart.)

Two dollar bill.

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I worry that a true spark of imagination is as rare as a two dollar bill.

That the silence in my heart is a sure sign of a closed mind.

That inspired thinking is just beyond my grasp.

When the ebb and flow of work runs its course, it becomes auto-task. And a day full of auto-task is a day full of mediocrity.

I’m always looking for the highs and lows, the rhythm, the gentle drive of an idea whose time has come.

I’m ready to discover that two dollar bill.

Murphy’s romance.

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There’s a pivotal scene near the end of one of my favorite movies, Murphy’s Romance, that I think of often. Emma Moriarty (Sally Field) and Murphy Jones (James Garner) dance around a May-December relationship throughout the story, and now –after Emma and her son move to town with nothing, hurting from a failed marriage and money issues; after Murphy spots her and decides right then and there that she’s the one, only she’s got to figure that out; after Emma starts a successful business boarding and training horses (one, of course, is Murphy’s); and after her ex-husband shows up, only to leave town with his young girlfriend after she surprises him with twin sons (phew) … Emma wonders what can happen next.

Emma: “What’ll I do with my life, Murphy? Should I get rid of the ranch, should I die my hair or put an ad in the singles column, what? Give me some advice, Murphy, you’ve lived a long time.”

Murphy: “You want advice? Write Dear Abby. I’m not a life guard and I don’t put up bail and I’m not your damn Dutch uncle.”

And then, Murphy plants a kiss on Emma, a wonderful wet smooch.

Murphy: “Now, if you don’t know how things are, then you’re not as smart as I thought you were.”

James Garner is honored with a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Murphy, and it’s a joy for me to watch how his character romances Emma –a woman any other woman can relate to. When I was in grade school, my teacher once declared I looked just like The Flying Nun (aka, Sally Field) in my class photo (and I must admit, it was true). So I was drawn to the movie because of the cast. But I watch it over and over again because the themes ring true –even now, after 25 years.

“What’ll I do with my life, Murphy?”

“Now, if you don’t know how things are, then you’re not as smart as I thought you were.”

Sense of smell.

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My husband spent Labor Day weekend unpacking boxes in his man cave, i.e., the garage. “It’s amazing,” he says, “each time I open a box, it smells like Ramona.” Most of the boxes in the garage were packed up several years ago –moved from our home (and my sanctuary) in Ramona, CA. Oh, yes. I remember. A year and a half ago –when I was unpacking boxes- I, too, was brought back to my beloved front yard in San Diego County … and promptly named our new home “Ramona in the Pines” as a tribute.

Antonia’s Flowers perfume brings me back to East Hampton, NY –weekends riding bikes to Georgica Pond, grilling tuna for dinner. One of Antonia Bellanca’s other fragrances –Tiempe Passate –takes me back to Italy and the hills of Panzano, taking cooking classes. It was my first trip abroad.

My first time west of the Mississippi was a camping trip to Canyonlands in Utah, an amazing 14 days experiencing space. For years afterward, I could return there in an instant, just by smelling the scent of sage warming in the sun.

It’s not enough to say that our sense of smell can help with memory (although it’s clear it can). A fragrance can bring back a sense of connection, reminding us of something meaningful.

And finding something meaningful is what it’s all about, isn’t it?

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Orderly conduct.

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I have a lot of respect for order. It is the order in my life that helps me to recognize opportunity, and act upon the wisdom of uncertainty.

The routine of my day can open up a whole new world of possibility –when I allow myself to see it. Noticing inspiration in the everyday is a practice that gives back when you least expect it.

Which brings me to the subject of deadlines. Surely, deadlines are the stuff of order, and in a professional writer’s world, they are a way to schedule our work. Surely, they’re the blueprint, the drawing, the overview, a place to start; surely, we promote the accomplishment of delivering finished projects “on time and on budget.” Order in motion.

Deadlines are in our world so we can fall into the gap between them, and live lives of extraordinary creation.

Laugh loud and often; the cosmic joke is on us.

Photo op by Kevin

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