Inspiring Women: Rachel Simpson: Affirmations

I love Rachel’s Daily Pep Talk from a Best Friend and look forward to it. Rachel describes the site as “daily affirmations that don't suck.”

Mostly these consist of positive, encouraging and motivating messages. Here’s one to counteract stress and focus on a goal. Another reminds us that each of us can express creativity. Then there’s one that urges you to trust yourself and remember where you’re the expert and need not heed criticism or instruction.

Rachel also shares affirmations through images and art. Here and here and here are some of my favorites.

When someone shares an accomplishment, Rachel gives a shout out, another aspect of affirmation that may inspire others in their own pursuits and reflective of the author’s generosity and kindness.

A great thing to do is subscribe to Rachel’s pepcast via iTunes and let her uplifting words enter into you through an auditory experience. Here’s a shining example. The site also has a “Random” link for those who like surprises. Here’s one I got to just now.

I look forward to seeing Rachel’s newest creations in my feed reader and always get a lift. Thank you Rachel!

Inspiring Women: Maria Droujkova: Mathemagician

I met Maria two years ago at ScienceOnline2010. I’m not a mathematician myself (although my father is,) and I’ve never taken any advanced math courses, but more on that another time. At the time I was a librarian for a scientific research institute and attracted to the event because of its emphasis on (and having learned about it through) social media. Anyhow, Maria and I struck up a conversation and I learned about her work which you can get glimpses of on her website and blog. Since my inclination is finding information, I answered some questions she posted to Twitter, and Maria eventually invited me to join her math social bookmarking group.

Maria describes the purpose of Natural Math from her teaching and learning practice and philosophy:

“We need to participate and engage babies and kids in math-rich, meaningful human endeavors that are useful, beautiful and fun. From the earliest time, kids should see themselves as co-creators of mathematics. The richness of the mathematical culture has to become available and accessible in a wide variety of communities, in many beautiful and meaningful forms.”

Toward these ends, Maria created “communities of practice,” through math clubs, videos, the Math Future Wiki (which hosts frequent online events with innovators in math study and teaching.) And consider Maria’s ideas on curriculum as well as her inspired crowdfunding endeavor to create math objects for young children, Moebius Noodles.

A recent story Maria co-wrote with Sarah Berenson emphasizes her concerns with encouraging girls to pursue math and science in school and beyond, focusing on the Girls on Track summer camp resulting from a partnership between several North Carolina colleges and schools and entering into its second decade. “Inspired by the girls, we are working on an integrated model connecting the academic track point of view with personal and community significance of mathematics,” the authors report.

Recently, Maria directed her energies towards math learning games and in recent presentations here and here discusses “helping everybody - millions of kids, parents, teachers - design or remix their own games,” through communities of practice, social networks, and taxonomies.

For her advocacy of math and children’s natural learning and creativity, her effective use of technology and social media, and her entrepreneurial spirit, it is no wonder that one of her fellow travellers called Maria “the Maven of Math World online,” and I heartily agree.

Inspiring Women: Christine: Resilience

Christine is not blogging at the moment. “I’m spent by the time I carve out a moment to write, and that means I’m not writing the things I want to be writing. That means it becomes a chore. When it becomes a chore, it creates guilt. The last thing I need in my life is guilt. I’ve worked too hard to find some emotional and mental stability.” So we can find on her Facebook, Twitter and other blogs. I miss her frequent blog posts, nevertheless.

Because I appreciate Christine’s honesty about writing and living, exemplified in this post where she writes: “I realized that the hard work I’ve done to pull myself out of the trenches of depression and anxiety has been important and valuable, but hasn’t yet fully addressed the root of my struggles—my sense of self-worth and my ability to love and honour myself.”

In another, on creativity, she says “Creativity means filling others with emotion, making a difference through beauty or skill, inspiring.” Then she goes on to write openly, “My life has become an array of contradictions. I’m happy, but I’m numb. I’m energetic, but I’m weary. I’m productive, but I’m still hopelessly lost. I’m doing, but I’m not being. I’m full of life, but running on creative empty.”

I consider Christine inspiring because she is willing to acknowledge her difficulties and persist towards equilibrium and self-expression. Look at the compassionate and open-hearted letter she writes to her younger self:

“Take the time to really consider your goals. Don’t worry about the expectations of others. They aren’t the ones who will be living your life. I cannot emphasize this enough. Stop, think and revisit your deepest thoughts often. Reflect on who you think you are and who you want to be. What brings you joy and helps you to feel fulfilled? Use this to help you decide what you want to do with your life. A day will come when you learn that a career should be about passion and happiness, rather than expectation and success. It should complement the rest of your your life, not be your life. Otherwise, you might regret some of the choices you make.”

And the hard realized truths she shares: “And so, if you ask me what I’ve learned this year—after all the reading and introspection, this hard, soul work—I’ve learned that this is just it. Today. This moment. Life is best lived now, not in the past or the future. If you can understand that, I mean really, really grasp it, then everything else either falls into place, or it falls away. All of it.”

Keeping an eye on my reader, Christine, until next time.

Inspiring Women: Barrie Davenport: Action

Years ago, someone said to me "Are you going to remain passive to your life or become active to it," or something to that effect. And I remained so for years, and perhaps so still to this day to a certain degree or a point on the continuum.

However, this isn't about me. This about Barrie who exemplifies being active to one's life and being bold, embodying the well known Marianne Williamson quote which says that one serves no one by shrinking and denying oneself.

Through her blog and her course materials and coaching Barrie offers practical ideas for taking action and changing one's life. Whether it's earning more money in any kind of situation, planning for the future, or giving mindful gifts to people in one's life, Barrie thinks of everything.

While Barrie gives instructions on self-examination and self-discovery, she also emphasizes focusing on the present moment and not losing sight of appreciation for where one is right now, as in this blog post which stands productivity and to-do-lists on its head. I think of the Frog and Toad books and how Toad made a list of what to do one day, invited Frog to join him, the list blew away and Toad refused to chase after it because that activity was not on his list. I know Barrie would kindly and humorously counsel us against such rigidity.

I'm also grateful for what Barrie writes about life transitions and her simple instructions emphasizing self-care, keeping up practices that work, letting go of why and obsessive thinking, using a journal and asking for help.

I'm fortunate to take a course from Barrie and Erin Falconer this month, challenged by the exercises, realizing how much work I need to do, and grateful for the support from the teachers and my fellow participants. Meanwhile, I cannot recommend enough this gorgeous blog by a lovely woman who recognized the need to change, and took the initiative and used the resources available to her to make it happen. I want what you have, Barrie.

Inspiring Women: Ariel Adkins: Wearing Art

I love fashion. When I was in college, a friend remarked to me that fashion is “art that people are wearing around.” I had no idea what he meant. Ariel taught me differently.

There are many wonderful fashion blogs; however, what Ariel accomplishes with her art-inspired outfits, her juxtaposition of paintings and photographs that show a range and flow of movements, is something quite extraordinary.

Ariel’s knowledge and appreciation of art enables her to draw out particular colors, styles and poses for her compositions. See the results of her influence from Paul Klee here and here. The paintings complement the photographs wonderfully, clearly demonstrating her inspiration. She shows a range of works from the artist to illustrate the significance of the works for her.

With work from the period typically called Abstract Expressionism and the artists influenced by it, Ariel’s outfits and motions really reflect the dynamics of the artworks. See her piece on Twombly with her fantastic paint-splattered trousers. She draws out some heart-burning colors from Rothko in this series. And Ariel makes a wonderful primary-color outfit reflecting Barnett Newman’s images.

Ariel does great things with early 20^th century painters such as Kirchner and Marc, the French Impressionists and Post-Impressionists (see especially her umbrella, shoes and movements and poses by the sea in the former.) Some explore particular themes or subjects of one artist, like Degas’ dancers, Picasso’s guitars, or globes and maps in Joyce Kozloff’s work. It’s a delight to be introduced to previously unknown artists (to me) such as Emily Kame Kngwarreye and Rufino Tamayo and Ariel’s results are equally stunning.

She’s not limited to painting, as this exceptional series inspired by medieval unicorn tapestries reveals.

At any rate, I’ll leave you with two posts that sum up how inspiring Ariel is. In one, she says, “An important lesson I've learned from art is how to discern color where, at first glance, there appears to be none,” and then goes on to transform the landscape suggested by this particular artist. In another, which may be my current favorite, she quotes Matisse "There are always flowers for those who want to see them," and the flower that is Ariel makes a bold color and texture statement enlivening a grey day.

I also like this short video of Ariel talking about her style inspiration; her voice is sweet and her enjoyment is enchanting.

My favorite story

This may be my favorite story.

I heard it in January 2010 at a storytelling event held at the Monti in Durham, North Carolina.
Scott Huler, an author of several books, talks about a time when he was "so thoroughly unhappy," "exiled to the state news desk" at the News & Observer. Why was he unhappy? Because journalism, at least what was expected or required of him, moved from telling stories to providing information ("Get statistics and write stories in the passive voice.") Through the experience, closeness with the escaped chimp, and writing the story, he discovers how he needs to change his life. He's just doing his job and doing it, figures out it no longer feeds him. The warmth, the humor, the surprise, the unexpected conclusion, all make it continue to resonate with me. Mixed in are some horrifying aspects, the prospect of an escaped chimp on the loose in Charlotte for a week, the roadside zoo in light of the recent tragedy in Ohio, the chimp biting the cameraman down to the bone, the chimp chain smoking. I forget these shocking details as I feel the storyteller's anger when the newspaper truncates the story which described an amazing day shared by many people. I like his description of how he checks his version of events with what others' experienced, it's a community storytelling, not something he feels possessive about.

What about me? Do I have a cage to break out of, or is it self imposed, like Blake's mind-forg'd manacles? Maybe that's an illusion, as Belle shows us. It's love and service. And gratitude. And doing what's worked before and may work again.

And what about what I call "my story?" An illusion too, maybe, just signifying the parts that I can recall at this moment, forgetting that I'm part of something greater?