Hello Evolutionistas!

Elissa here ... Last night, Gretchen and I had a great meeting with a fun, new friend named Dana. (keep an eye out for her on this site ... you'll definitely be seeing more of her!)

Over our respective cocktails and gorgonzola/pear pizzas, we shared tales of travel, thoughts on the self and our respective opinions on the idea of Aliveness. And for me, I shared how, lately, this feeling of Aliveness has been seriously escaping me as I've traveled through my everyday life.

I shared how I've been feeling -- even in the midst of a brand new year and new intentions -- in a big, deep, frustrated-at-the-world rut. How I have recently gotten so into the grind and focused on the weeds and addicted to "working hard" that even I have seemed to miss out on the bigger picture, the e>vness of life, the essence of ALIVENESS.

And I was reminded again of how this ... all of life ... is a journey that ebbs and flows, starts and stops. And I was reminded again that the entire world is a projection of myself. And, I was reminded of how feeling alive -- when you're out of practice -- doesn't just come 'naturally' all the time. And I was reminded that I might actually need to REMEMBER to stay connected to my Aliveness...

And so, to you, to the world, to the universe, I make a declaration ... a New Year's Reclamation (as Gretchen calls it) to re-own my freedom, to reclaim my possibilities, to remember my purpose. So:

Today, I choose Aliveness. Today, I choose to feel good. Today, I choose to be brave. Today, I choose to let go. Today, I choose to be free. Like a parachute cord, Aliveness is always there, just waiting for me to grab it and pull. A reliable, never-lets-you-down, old friend...Aliveness is just waiting for me to grab its hand and fly through life, leaving my stories and excuses behind, trusting that I'm going to land in the right place, more exhilarated and empowered than ever. No matter where I am today, no matter what comes my way, I choose ALIVENESS.

(and how have you been feeling lately?)

What's up everyone!? Charlie here! We went to the Civil War! Granted it was 24 hours later than expected. But it actually happened, which is obviously the most important thing! Here's my installment 2 of the interns' trip to the Civil War.

Where does the time go? I have made a commitment to write this blog and I thought it was just yesterday that I posted. Turns out it was more like 10 yesterdays ago ... What the??? It reminds me of a discussion Gretchen and I have been having lately about showing up in this world. And the gorgeous responsibility inherent within.

When we talk about "showing up" we talk about being present, engaged, enlivened and excited with the current events around us. Diving into relationships, commitments and activities wholeheartedly. Living in the moment, for the moment.

Sometimes it's quite easy to be this engaged -- even lost in the moment. Other times, however, we find ourselves slinking away, hiding, ignoring -- moving away from life instead of lunging toward it. One idea I ponder when this happens is where fear is showing up ... If I'm backing away from life, dodging things, it helps me to stop and think what I'm possibly fearful of in the situation. This  helps me focus on the deeper challenge and then puts me in a place to choose a course of action.

For example, I've recently been thinking about networking and my place in that realm. In the past, I have not really engaged in networking/meeting people/following up/creating new relationships -- finding "helpers" as Gretchen and I now call it. It was simply easier to blend in with the crowd, or have a brief encounter of small talk with new people, and then go back with my current tribe. This, however, hasn't been helping me expand my horizons or make new pals. So, I asked myself what I was fearful of ... Answers quickly showed up: What if they don't like me; making a commitment if they do; now being 'responsible' to uphold these relationships; I don't really have the time to do this ... (Wait, is that true? What am I fearful of when I use 'time' as an excuse? Why am I fearful of upholding new relationships? And on and on...) As I dig deeper, I find more answers and am able to see new perspectives and -- most importantly -- take action on this as opposed to allowing it to clutter up my consciousness any longer.

So, what do you think? Where in your life do you show up? What events, people, things make you excited to do so? And what events, people, things make you cringe? What do you do to step back into the flow?

Do you ever read the "DailyOm"? It's cool, meditative and often gets us thinking in new, unfettered ways as we begin our days .... Today's idea was a concept of "Tearing Down to Build Up" -- or how complaining is a way of removing what's bad from our lives and allowing space for the good to  enter. Many of us, however, get stuck in the 'tearing down' part a bit too long -- which never allows for the solution to enter. Or, as DailyOm says:

"Complaining is a person’s way of acknowledging that they are not happy with the way things are. In a metaphorical way, when we complain or criticize, we are tearing down an undesirable structure in order to make room for something new. But if all we do is tear down, never bothering to summon the creative energy required to create something new, we are not fulfilling the process. In fact, we are at risk for becoming a stagnant and destructive force in our own lives and in the lives of the people we love. ... Another issue with complaining is that we sometimes tend to focus on other people, whom we can’t change, as a way of deflecting attention from the one person we can change—ourselves. So transforming complaining into something useful is a twofold process that begins with turning our critical eye to look at things we can actually do something about, and then taking positive action."

This reminds me of everything from harping at the airline workers when our luggage is lost to blaming our mothers for not living up to our expectations (quite a range, but I think you get where I'm coming from) ... Whether on actual vacation or living the vacation called our lives, we have the chance right now to, yes, tear down ... and then, we have the beautiful choice to build something new. Every. Single. Moment.

I'm going to get out the Legos right now ..... and build something purty ......

-elissa