Giving Permission To Ask

My 20-month old daughter and I were hanging out yesterday evening after I got home from work. I asked her if I could have a hug and get some love.

She told me no. And she went on about her business.

I caught myself asking her (playfully), “Why not?”

Advice only matters if you know what you want

Are you a dreamer? Do you spend many cycles searching for advice to help you get what you want? Or validating that what you want is something you should want? Or maybe you should want something else?

Receiving advice can be wonderfully helpful or an exercise in futility, frustration, or worse.

Off the top of my head, here are some categories of advice:

Morning is the worst time to read this…

I consider myself to be a creative person. Also, easily unfocused from productive outcomes. I’ve noticed that mornings are an incredibly important part of a creative day. Regardless of intention when I start the day, the outcome is highly variable.

I’ve noticed that mornings are an incredibly important part of a creative day. Regardless of intention when I start the day, the outcome is highly variable.

So, on days I *do* create, what is it that’s different?

Being Seen

Perfect.

Finding Center

As children we find ways to protect ourselves from our vulnerability, from being hurt, diminished, and disappointed.  We put on armor; we used our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors as weapons; and we learned how to make ourselves scarce, even to disappear. Now as adults we realize that to live with courage, purpose, and connection –  we must again be vulnerable. We must take off the armor, put down the weapons, show up, and let ourselves be seen. 

More from Brené Brown. So much of my work with teenagers and adults is around identifying the armor taken up in childhood and figuring out how to put it back down.

What armor do you carry? How did it once serve you? Can you, in full gratitude for the protection it offered your young self, release it and step forward lighter, more resilient, and aware of how lovable you are?

I see you…

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How uncertain is YOUR life?

Many of us fear more than we need to, in a variety of circumstances. We shortcut uncertainty by substituting it with certainty of a negative result. I do it too!

By doing this, we effectively create a bottleneck in the meaningfulness of our lives. We only let a little meaning in at a time. And so we are constantly under stimulated, bored and disconnected from life.

I have learned, from experimenting with the uncertain, that while some of it leads to pain and disappointment, much of it is interesting, fun or otherwise more meaningful than turning it away.

The happiness container

There’s a saying: You are what you eat.

It’s pretty simple on the face of it. If I eat veggies, I’ll take on the properties of veggies. If I eat meat, I’ll take on more of the properties of meat. Energy. Protein. Fats. Etc. If I eat nothing but sugar and fatty foods, I’ll become fatty.

Sometimes I’m good at being mindful about what I eat. Other times, habits kick in and if I’m distracted emotionally by something else, I’m not going to concern myself with what I’m putting in.

But what about other types of consumption?

Poverty and Judgment: Sharing Washington Post article

Deep questions at the end of a great analysis on poverty and US policies.

“Why do we begrudge people struggling to get by the occasional indulgence? Why do we so little value pleasure and joy? Why do we insist that if you are poor, you should also be miserable? Why do we require penitence?”–Stephen Pimpare

Washington Post: Laziness isn’t why people are poor. And iPhones aren’t why they lack health care.

Remembering

Love this.

Finding Center

A friend shared this blog with me today, one person’s reflection on national allegiance and how countries choose to remember or release the darker parts of their histories. It’s beautifully written and offers parallels to our own country’s current choices. This quote from the German constitution speaks to so much:

Human dignity is inviolable … All persons are equal before the law … No person shall be favored or disfavored because of sex, parentage, race, language, homeland and origin, faith or religious or political opinions. No person shall be disfavored because of disability … There shall be no censorship.

Forgiveness work is powerful stuff. As I sat with the article and what arose, I found myself reflecting on how we as individuals have choices around honoring the forgiveness work and our own darker aspects.

At a recent training I attended, a woman shared her experience at Marianne Williamson’s Sister Giant conference in…

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OurRevolution’s response to my open letter

On December 31st, I posted an open letter expressing my frustration with their communications. Typically they send a press release correlating to the most recent political news outrage – and within are continuous and overt calls to donate. And little else.

Following is their response, which includes some options for participating in something beyond your donation:

Ethan,

As an organization formed out of the Bernie Sanders campaign, Our Revolution’s guiding principles are encouraging engagement in the political process and fighting for the progressive agenda that brought us all together. We appreciate you reaching out to learn more about what we are working on now, and how you can help with what comes next.

1. Starting local Our Revolution Organizations – Our Revolution is about empowering you to continue making positive change in your community, and we’ve been working hard to develop comprehensive state-based organizing plans. Each state has its own plan which takes into account the tens of thousands of survey responses we received when we reached out to you about how you’re already organizing in your state, who you’re coordinating with, and other factors. A one-size-fits-all approach isn’t going to work for what we hope to accomplish – every community is unique, and while we all face similar struggles, some may be more immediate in one place than another. These local organizing plans will be released in the coming weeks, to start the work of forming local affiliates that will have long-term success. In the meantime, you can join the Local Our Revolution Organizing slack.
2. Strengthening and increasing the number of Sanctuary Cities – Sanctuary cities are places that protect undocumented immigrants from deportation – and will be a central focus of our work. By working with grassroots organizations, we will ensure the existing protections granted by sanctuaries are kept in place while working to encourage more cities and states across the country to adopt these critically important protections.
3. Empowering people to host events – map.ourrevolution.com
   One of the most powerful aspects of Bernie’s campaign was when people began to take initiative locally through the Bernie map. While it started with just a few official events, by the end of the campaign there were thousands of canvass launches, phone bank parties, and other events supporting the work of the campaign and building our collective power and talents. We want this to continue through the Our Revolution map. If you want to host an event to talk about the best way to make contact with your local lawmakers, make phone calls to Congress to encourage protection of progressive programs or policies, or just sit down and get to know other folks in your area ready to do the important work ahead of us – create an event on the map! We can send more detailed instructions if you’d like, just ask. Once you create an event on the map, you will receive an email on how you can promote your event locally – we have a tool that will allow you to email up to 1000 local Bernie supporters. We can use this tool to build serious power!
4. Transform our political parties – transformtheparty.com
   Throughout this election cycle, voters have encountered outdated policies and structural flaws which made it more difficult to become politically involved: early voter registration cutoff dates, closed primaries, low voter enthusiasm and turnout. They have been asking, “How do we fix this?”. The answer – get involved. Join your local Democratic party, Working Families party, Green party or whatever matches best with your beliefs. Gain voting rights on issues regarding the rules and platform your state uses, and on who leads your party on a state and national level. Become a local party leader. Our Revolution developers have created a tool that simplifies the process of getting involved in local parties, and the research to make that tool work continues with a great team of volunteers and staff. You can join the project by signing up here.
5. Clemency for Oscar Lopez Rivera
   Thirty-five years ago Oscar Lopez Rivera, a Puerto Rican nationalist, and a member of the FALN (Armed Forces of the National Liberation) was imprisoned for his political opposition to the US colonization of Puerto Rico. Oscar has become one of the longest serving political prisoners in history. President Obama has the power to grant Oscar clemency before he leaves office, returning him to his family and home in Puerto Rico. Time is quickly running out and if Oscar is not pardoned by Obama, he will die in prison for his beliefs. Our Revolution is encouraging people to call the White House every day until Oscar is released and help raise awareness by sharing this video,
6. Electing Keith Ellison for DNC Chair- If Democrats are going to win power to help advance a progressive agenda, we need a leader who will prioritize the progressive agenda and grassroots organizing for the future of the Democratic Party. Our Revolution believes that leader is Keith Ellison. Although our supporters are unable to vote for DNC chair, we are working to ensure democratic leadership understands the people are ready for a leader like Ellison. Our petition has reached over one million signatures,
7. You can also see more recent victories and statements on the Our Revolution Press Page
   

These are just a few of projects we are currently focused on. None of these would be possible without the dedication and support of people like you. You have been and continue to be the greatest strength of our organization and this movement.

We hope you will join us in the struggle – there are many important issues and campaigns we will tackle together in the coming years. We sincerely value your input and continued support.

Open letter to OurRevolution: Stop disempowering us

Dear OurRevolution staffers–

Nothing is more disempowering and non-revolutionary than sending the continual message that our only power is in giving money to someone else to do all the work. And this message is sent in email to supporters over and over again, day after day.

Empower me. I like that BrandNewCongress in their fundraising emails also provide concrete steps for ACTION that supporters can take to be involved and help with specific issues. If OurRevolution can’t do the same, then it is no revolution. It is politics as usual. The same losing game we’re already a victim to.

My political resolution for 2017 is to stop consuming messages of fear and hope that only ask for my money. In 2017 will you be our revolution or just voice that tells me that money–not action–is the solution to all our problems in politics?

Best,
Ethan Freckleton