Monday, April 29, 2013

Having A Secondary Support System


Over the past two weeks, one of my accountability partners (Hubby) presented a couple of challenges, both of which he was also willing to participate. 

Because he is a creative via nature and nurture, his approach to life is generally complimentary to my own analytically hues. Remaining focused on the goal of developing The Message of Me (inspired by Judy Carter's The Message of You book), he suggested I accompany him to the "Story Salon" hosted by the fabulous Beverly Mickins.

As I gasped and slowly exhaled through perched lips, I passively agreed. With Hubby's non-intrusive guidance, he assured me that, "you don't have to tell a story. Just take in the environment of support."

In the intimate environment of our neighborhood coffeehouse, I met other supportive spouses and partners, as well as Mrs. Fran Miller, a 90 year-old Yoga instructor who shared one of her laugh-out-loud stories for the first time.

SideBar: After taking second, third, and forth looks at Fran and her daughters, I questioned my reality. I secretly thought, either Fran has been drinking Dracula juice or she adopted her children later in life. The rabbit-hole of incongruent thinking got worse as I admired her two daughters, who are in their 60's - get the hell outta here. They didn't look older than maybe mid-thirties - damn.  

Anywho, I digress.

The Story Salon was a great departure from the stereotypical public speaking arenas that I've grown accustomed to hearing about. Although places like the Toastmasters gatherings have an appropriate appeal that's more formal, one can easily get lost in the crowd. However, the smaller cafe environments similar to the Story Salon setting, felt more supportive and suitable to my spirit.

All in all, I'm glad I went.

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