Nine hundred miles. That is the distance that separates me physically from one of the people I love and admire most in the world.
Ours is a friendship formed first online.
It is always interesting what brings people together over the vast tracings of the interwebs and the years I have spent working in this space. It is often common ground and interests – motherhood – sometimes parenting in general, an understanding of the work/life juggle unique to people like us – working at odd hours, the delicate balance of the ‘work-from-home’ parent who is both needed by family and clients at all hours, relying on far away friends who ‘get you’ and your life’s work and sometimes succumbing to feeling overwhelmed by it all.
It is sometimes just a ‘click’, a kindred spirt, a good soul, a true friend who sees the good in others and wants to make the world a better place a little bit at a time.
My friend Nadia is just that kind of friend, that kind of ‘click’.
I was recently asked to fill in the blank, ‘who inspires you and why…’ As I thought through the list of usual suspects I imagine typically pepper a response to that question – parents, children, Oprah, Mother Teresa, Maya Angelou, Brene Brown and Elizabeth Gilbert …. I found myself mentally unfurling ‘inspiration’.
Who do I know is living an inspired life and what does that even mean?
It feels like a journey to self-discovery, to uncovering what feeds your soul. A life inspired makes you better at YOU – at motherhood, at partnership, at friendship, at life decisions, at letting go, at BEING AND DOING. I suspect this journey finds you fulfilled, at peace and happy.
While I have no doubt Mother Teresa and Maya Angelou were wise, good and inspiring individuals and Oprah, Brene Brown and Elizabeth Gilbert are likely living a certain version of an inspired life, I can’t claim to fully know their paths. There is, of course, absolutely enough I can read about them all to offer me a a definite level of inspiration.
However, it is my friend Nadia – and the journey I have witnessed her take for the past few years – one from full-time with the website she founded, ChildMode – to the inclusion of Buti Yoga in her life – a path of self-discovery and happiness that now includes her teaching classes, training others, organizing and running retreats and helping woman to follow that same path of peace – all while staying beautifully in sync with her husband and three beautiful children.
I’m inspired by the peace I hear when I talk to her, the happiness that is evident in her every day and her clear wish to share that with others. I’m smiling as I type because I love her happy.
About two weeks ago, another good friend I have long adored, Christine Koh, reached out to share she was working on a project that mattered to her a great deal – #LiveUnlimited for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The campaign challenges people like you and I to transform perceived limits into unlimited possibilities to live life to the fullest.
Not only am I always happy to support friends like Christine and causes like #LiveUnlimited, it was easy for me to see how the admiration I have for Nadia, how inspired I am by watching her truly live unlimited by stress, by day-to-day chaos, by many of the things I often feel weigh me down – is both truly an inspiration and a fit for explaining why I think work like Christine’s and the MDA’s is important.
I work to #LiveUnlimited by BEING in the moment. Whether at a small person sporting game, practice or camp (almost daily), working, or spending time with my family – my goal is to stop DOING so much and to simply BE and embrace that time. It sounds simple, but it is big for me.
If you would like to support the #LiveUnlimited campaign, you can:
Until July 31st, you can create your own #LiveUnlimited custom graphic (like mine above) and share it on social. For every share graphic, a generous sponsor will donate $1 up to $30,000. It costs you nothing but 30 seconds of your time to make a difference.
You can also buy an Endorphin Warrior #Live Unlimited bracelet. For every bracelet purchased, $6 will benefit MDA.
And finally, you may simply want to learn a little more about MDA and some of the special stories that exist among the people who are living with MDA and the families who support them. Listening, watching, hearing….it all matters.
Thank you, as always, friends, for being here.
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