Hello friends.
It’s been a minute, hasn’t it?
My last post on older women having a moment in the spotlight hit a nerve. In a good way. It generated 250 likes, 85 comments, 43 shares and lots of new subscribers. If that’s YOU, welcome, I’m so happy to have you here at Life (un)Learned. If you’ve been with me for awhile, thank-you for your ongoing support and readership. I appreciate every one of you.
The post also lead to a mighty spat with my husband. More on that below…
I decided to take the month of August off. I could feel it coming.
After finishing 12-weeks of intensive group therapy to help with PTSD, I realized I needed to treat myself to some freedom. Freedom from weekly group and freedom from having to think too hard—which included writing my weekly newsletter.
Truth be told, I wanted to read more than write and I wanted open space in my calendar and head to be able to allow thoughts and ideas to grow and take shape—without the pressures of weekly deadlines.
I used to thrive under pressure, I likely still do, but in shorter bursts. I could feel my battery needed a recharge and to my delight, I actually LISTENED to what my mind and body were telling me. (Surprise, surprise, we can learn new ways of being!)
SELF RESPECT
This has been the biggest gift my major life change has given me.1 Self-respect. Enough to listen to what I need and taking the time to tune into those needs.
Here’s the funny thing. I thought I had started my “time off” when my husband and I took off for a few days on our boat to hang out in the Gulf Islands, not too far from home, but enough to feel like we were ‘away.’ You know those kind of holidays right?
Problem was, I had an essay writing itself in my head and the more I tried to ignore it, the louder it got. I realized I wasn’t going to have any peace, until I got all those words out of my head and onto paper. Luckily, I brought my laptop (in case of an emergency such as this.) When inspiration hits, you need to be ready, right?
I got up early and wrote, Spotlight on Older Women and Why We’re Awesome. The words flowed out of me.
I was smiling so wide as I was writing, totally inspired by these older women—Nancy Pelosi, Kamala Harris, Celine Dion. I was so happy. Giddy really. It felt so good to feel real happiness and freedom. Especially while writing.
I was “in the zone”, but the problem was I was also on a small boat, with my husband, who was getting irked the longer I was taking. (As a writer, you know how annoying it can be if you’re in the zone and someone’s trying to take you out of it? Very!)
Despite having my noise cancelling headphones on and being immersed in the words pouring out of me, I could feel his restless energy and exasperation.
“Don’t burst my happiness bubble,” I warned. “I’m in the zone. I’ll be done soon.”
He went out in the kayak, came back and I was finished, but editing to get it posted.
The little spat that ensued wasn’t a big deal, but it was enough to remind me of my old life. The one where I was on vacation—be it on the boat, Europe or Hawaii and I was also always working.
“I thought no working when we’re on holidays,” my husband said with a note of resentment and hint of anger.
I choked on my tea, sputtering and trying not to yell at him, “WHAT?!”
“I’m NOT working, I’m writing my newsletter. It’s not work, it’s something I enjoy doing.”
But there it was. The trigger.
Was I working? I was certainly absorbed in my task, but very happily. Couldn’t he see that?
I knew I wouldn’t be able to completely unplug until I got this post out of my head, of that I was sure. I suppose with my head down, and in my bubble at the laptop, that’s what it must’ve looked like for my husband—like work. Wasn’t that how I looked when I was working for the last several decades? Albeit, stressed and anxious as opposed to filled with inspiration and joy?
Wake up call for me. I was away on a boat in a beautiful setting. Time to put the laptop away and enjoy my surroundings. Which I have been doing for the past month.
But, I’ve missed you guys!
I can’t tell you what it means to me to have the support through your comments and friendships which have developed here. When someone connects with something I’ve written it encourages me and fills my cup. I love good debates and hearing from you, so keep it coming! Robust discussions in the comments is my absolute favourite, so when a post strikes a chord and generates that type of discussion, my heart sings.
On that note, I’m excited to share with you what’s coming for fall.
👩🏻💼 30+ Years of Business Leadership
While I may no longer want to be running a company or acting as a CEO, I have much experience from those days I want to share. As a writer, mentor, advocate, strategist, that was my mojo for a very long time. I’ll share some of the leadership and business tools I learned with you in the hopes these stories can help you in your daily lives—whether personal or business. It would be a shame to let it all go to waste!
🧘🏻♀️30-Day Yoga Challenge – NOVEMBER 1-30
I firmly believe in the power of movement and that moving our bodies is one of the best ways to help us keep physically and mentally healthy. And, what better month to do this than November!
No matter where you are on the political spectrum, the anticipation and anxiety is likely to be felt by all of us as the U.S. election unfolds and is ultimately decided. What better way to help us get through, no matter the outcome than some mindful movement.
HOW IT WILL WORK:
We’ll use the free videos from Yoga with Adrienne.
There will be weekly calls to keep us accountable and chat about the week behind us (or even ahead, think of it as mini-group therapy! But with tea and friends.)2
I’ll send out more details as we get closer to November for those that are interested.
🎤 Life Transition Conversations
Keeping on the theme of 30 (x3)…. In 2025, I’ll be turning 60! I’ll be sharing wisdom from some exceptional people who’ll share what they’ve learned as they’ve navigated through their own life transitions. We’ve got some great guests lined up with some big transitions, so stay tuned! And, if you’re someone who has experienced a major life transition—whether by choice or circumstance and want to be part of the Life (un)Learned podcast, drop me a note in the DM’s and let me know. We learn best when we learn from each other.
🛋️ Armchair Therapist
And yes, Armchair Therapist will be back too. That’s where I honour my dead therapist of 30 years by providing my imaginary therapist conversations from wisdom I learned from him over the years. One of our last sessions (he died of cancer two years ago), he talked about the tens of thousands of hours of clinical therapy sessions he had done in his lifetime. This is my way of keeping his wisdom alive.
Thanks for being here. I’m looking forward to re-connecting and sharing more with you as this “new year” gets underway. Happy September.
And as always…
What say you?
Tell me about your own summer vacation! Exciting and far away, or relaxing and closer to home? Or both?!
You can read more about what lead to this major life transition here.
I was inspired by
’s 100 day art challenge earlier this year. I joined the community as a wannabe artist. Most of the women who took up the challenge were extremely talented artists and graphic designers. I was not, but as we got to know each other these calls became a welcome part of my week. People shared their various creative projects and we got to watch in real time as we all worked to stretch our collective creative muscles. Most of the time, this also lead to talking about the challenges of life as opposed to art. The discussions that ensued as we lifted each other up and found a space to share and connect were something I appreciated and hope we can continue as part of the yoga challenge in November.
We ended our summer with a wedding in Columbus this past weekend. It was the first double generations set of weddings we've attended. My college roommate's circa 1990 and now his son. What made it even more special was that we discovered in 1990 that I was related to his bride. So I had lots of cousins at the wedding.
I can't seem to leave my loop of weekly posts.
Congrats on getting some time off and the success of that last post.
And you were working; it just happened to be something you love doing. Nothing better than being in the zone. Nothing.
Ah, this strikes a chord with me. My dear husband loves his weekends and completely detaches from work, while I rarely stop. Even if I'm not writing, I'm thinking about it. But this gray line between "work" and "fun" isn't for everyone, certainly.