I had one of my most fun interviews to date this morning. I’ll be sure to share it next week when the podcast goes live. Before we started, the host asked me if I’d be okay with talking about politics. I was so excited! One of my pet peeves is the encouraged silence about religion and politics. I am not a person who enjoys debate or argument, but I do enjoy speaking my piece. I operate from a place of love, so if someone else has a differing opinion from a place of love I want to hear it. Now, if you have a different opinion from a hateful place, this goddess has no time for your nonsense.
I support Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in November’s presidential election. When Bernie Sanders and Stacey Abrams were still candidates, I supported them. They are no longer options for the presidential ticket, so I support the candidates that most closely resemble my dream ticket. What I don’t support is hatred, whether it’s spewed across the nation by the current man-child in the white house or if it’s slung by misogynists against Kamala Harris. Neither candidate is perfect. Neither am I or anyone else.
In the same way we may find ourselves forced into political or spiritual silence, we may find ourselves in all kinds of invisible cages of our own design or someone else’s. Cages that tell us what we can talk about, where we can live, or who we can love. Cages that keep us out of places that we want to go, like so-called “exclusive” neighborhoods or institutions. And cages that keep us trapped in places we want to leave, like relationships, religions, or even families that have become abusive.
When I was twenty, I worked in New York City’s iconic World Financial Center. At its heart was a beautiful marble atrium lined with palm trees and covered by a huge glass dome. It was absolutely stunning. When I wanted to go to the lower level, I always took the side escalator. For some reason, I didn’t think I was allowed to walk down the beautiful marble staircase. It was as if there was an invisible barrier. Something told me that area was off-limits to me. I worked there for many months before I walked down those steps, and it was only after seeing other people do it who looked like me. I had created a cage for myself.
You have probably heard the story of frogs in a bucket. (Or, I think they’re frogs.) Anyway, if you put frogs in a bucket that is too large for them to jump out of, eventually they will give up. If you transfer them to a smaller bucket later, they won’t even try to jump out. They’ve been conditioned to believe there is no escape. They don’t realize their circumstances have changed.
This happens to all of us. We learn from our experiences. If we try and fail, we may come to the conclusion that we shouldn’t try again. I wrote a book in 1995 and couldn’t find a publisher. I told myself my writing career was over. I opened a fitness center franchise in 2003, and it didn’t work out. I told myself I would never own a business again. Like many people, I’ve experienced heartache that made me want to give up on love.
It’s so easy to hide in invisible cages, hoping to keep ourselves safe.
But are we safe or are we just dead inside?
So what if we step outside into the light? What if we try again? To pursue our dreams of happiness and fulfillment? To speak our truth? To question authority and the status quo? What if we risk another round of scraped knees and hurt feelings? Will we die from trying or die from giving up? Or maybe it will be different this time. Our circumstances have changed. Perhaps we're older and wiser. We've walked through fires before. And maybe this time we'll experience something beautiful we thought was out of reach.
I want to open doors that are off-limits. I want to speak and stand in my truth. As John Lewis would say, I want to make good trouble. I hope you want good trouble too.
I wish you Freedom, Alignment and Effortless Abundance!
Trish
P.S. The photo is a quote a friend shared with me. I don’t know who the author is, but whoever wrote it is one smart cookie. If you want to connect, join me for tomorrow’s author chat. We’ll be talking about self-love, releasing anger and generosity. Sign up at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAvceGhqDIiHNXQ9UeqdfrMOoCJD6gJ7urB
