This first post, the breakdown that started the whole path into our metaphorical Phoenix rising from the ashes, launches the journey from dark to light. But at the end of this post, we are still very much in the dark. The vulnerability of recording this caught me by surprise. It doesn’t really matter that this was three years ago and that we are today, in so many ways, entirely past the trauma and uncertainty of then. To say these words out loud was to give them a very different place of prominence in my life, and I was taken aback by how very present they made our past feel. Dr…
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Two Voices of Hope: Hearing From Us Both a Prologue (video)
Yesterday, we launched the first post in our nine-part series on Dr Marry’s progression into alcoholism and our journey back to sobriety together. To say that we are overwhelmed with the responses would be a gross understatement. We are truly humbled by the outpouring of support. We wanted to give you a heads up of what is coming so you have some sense of how this is going to play out. Every Saturday, from February 1 to March 28th, a blog post will come out, one from me, one from Dr Marry and back and forth. Every Tuesday, starting Feb 4, an accompanying video of the blog post will arrive.…
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Raise your hand if you learned something
Hey, guess what? I gave a TEDx talk at the University of Mary in 2016. I had kind of forgotten about it until I found it on Youtube when I was looking for something else this morning. The invitation was inspired by this Forum column I had written earlier that year and because the theme was ARTiculate. A few thoughts about my TEDx talk: Holy moly–I took repetition to a whole new level! (Would have been nice if someone had said in the creation phase, “You don’t have to repeat the same phrase 400 times.”) Wait! So you do or do not need good art and culture????? Right before I…
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Reflecting on my past and sharing some important advice
Yesterday, I had the absolute privilege of giving the commencement address at the December graduation ceremony of my first Alma Mater, Minnesota State University Moorhead. When President Anne Blackhurst called me in November to ask if I would be willing to speak, I jumped at the opportunity. This has secretly been on my bucket list for quite awhile now, so I was thrilled to be invited. With 500 graduates and a packed house of around 2,000 people, I was anxious, but I also felt pretty good about my talk since it was inspired by and adapted from the LadyBoss talk I gave earlier this year. I was so proud to…