Tag: brave

Being BRAVE is catchy!

by Karen, posted in Interviews, local fun, my one word, The BRAVE Interviews, TV series, writing

I was trolling Facebook recently, after working on the next “The BRAVE Interview” for my blog (coming in March, 2017). I must be primed to see the word ‘brave’. You know, like when you’re pregnant and suddenly you see pregnant women everywhere?

capeneddick1

So I couldn’t help but notice this page with Being Brave with Abbie McG emblazoned across the top.

Since I chose BRAVE as ‘my one word‘ in 2015, I’ve been all about the brave.

I created the “One Brave Thing” group on Facebook, a private group for anyone who has read my book (One Brave Thing), where we support one another’s efforts to do brave things.

I launched The BRAVE Interview Series on my blog at kwrites.com, where once a month I invite a reader of my book to discuss ‘one brave thing’ they have done in their own lives.

I acquire ‘brave’ jewelry wherever I find it. This ‘brave’ bracelet is from The Shops at Cape Neddick in Maine.

🙂

I also try not to hide from any chances I get to be brave in my own life now.

So, coming full circle, of course I will be watching Abby McGilvery’s Being Brave TV episode!

MyOneWord 2017

by Karen, posted in my one word

As has happened in the past, I have had my one word for 2017 picked out since about October: COMFORT. I was happy, comfortable even 🙂 , with my choice. Thinking ahead, I could see all sorts of ways that I could be welcoming my new word into my life. Comfy clothes! Comfy shoes! Comfort foods! Warm in front of the wood stove in the winter! Only putting myself in comfortable situations!

And then a different word snuck into the periphery of my psyche. Actually, snuck isn’t really the right word…slammed is more like it. I was just sitting there, minding my own business, when it hit: CHANNEL.

Channel.

channel

I don’t know. It’s kind of growing on me.

I think that comfort, although a very nice idea, wouldn’t push me to grow in ways that channel, like 2015’s brave, might.

I just have a feeling.

Because this year’s word, grace, although lovely, didn’t push me like brave did. As a matter of fact, there have been reverberations of brave all throughout 2016, even though it was the prior  year’s word.

Maybe you’ll choose one word to focus on for the entire year this year. There is a word finder to help you choose on myoneword.org.

Disclaimer: Nothing is set in stone. I reserve the right to change my mind at the last minute. I work best under pressure. 🙂

The BRAVE Interview #5 December 2016: Jeanne Emerson

by Karen, posted in Adult children, Angels, family, friends, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews

Here is #5 in The BRAVE Interview series! It’s the Who, What, When, Where, How,  (and sometimes Why) of YOUR ‘one brave thing’! December’s interview is with Jeanne Emerson!

jeanne-emersonWho: Hi. My name is Jeanne Emerson.  I’m a grandma, gardener, artist, yogi, retired social worker and grieving mother.  I’m fortunate to live in a peaceful and cozy home in southern Maine…it is my sanctuary.  I am calm here, reflective, often tearful and recently, joyful…again.  And, I’m about to celebrate my 65th birthday.  WOW.

What:  I never really thought that I would feel brave about this but I do.  My one brave thing is to allow the feeling of joy back into my life.  My son Scott died three years ago.  He was 35 years old, funny, handsome, loving and very artistic.  His death came as a shock, no preparation…but even if I had been expecting it, it still would have been a shock.  No mother could prepare for this.

When:  The call came at 8:45 on a Tuesday night. (Tuesday has become my least favorite day of the week ever since).

Where:  I was home, the phone rang and the police officer had the nerve to say, “I’m sorry to inform you that your son is dead.”  How could he say something like that about my child??  I hated that officer at that moment.  I couldn’t spare any compassion for him then, no ability to care about how awful that call must have been for him to make.  Compassion could and would come later.

Why:  I’ll never know.  I won’t know why Scott died at such a young age, with so much more to offer, so much more to experience.  (please believe  me, I have driven myself to extreme exhaustion trying to understand).  But here’s what I do understand…healing can happen, life does in fact go on (as much as you may not want it do)…joy can enter again.

How:  This part of the interview is perhaps the easiest to explain.  My joy has come back because of trust.  My husband, Tim, my son Matt, family members and very precious friends believed in me.  They trusted me when I was a wailing mess on the floor, they trusted me when I couldn’t get through a conversation without crying, they trusted me when I couldn’t eat, sleep or get out of my pajamas, they trusted me when I would sit and stare, unable or unwilling to talk.  Somehow they trusted my process, that I just had to go through this my way (albeit dramatic and probably frightening to witness), but trust they did.  AND, miraculously, bit by bit, I started to live again without my son (well, without him in the way I knew him before his death….this is another interview but I KNOW that he is still with me, guiding me, encouraging me in my artistic pursuits, laughing with me and still loving me).  I feel very brave for laughing, running, playing, creating and loving.  This is my most important brave thing….so far.  

Jeanne, thank you so much for your brave, powerful words. ❤

Check out Jeanne’s designs at FOUND in Kennebunk (42 Main St; 207-604-5009) and on her website: emersondesigns.net

The BRAVE Interview #3 October 2016: Sheila Brownlow

by Karen, posted in (it's all about the) food, Being BRAVE, Catching women being brave, friends, health, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews

Here is #3 in The BRAVE Interview series! It’s the Who, What, When, Where, How,  (and sometimes Why) of YOUR ‘one brave thing’! November’s interview is with Sheila Brownlow!

scale

WHO AM I?  Sheila Brownlow

MY ONE BRAVE THING—when, where, with whom:  I have stopped discussing eating, how upset I am at my eating, how much I weigh, whether I am peeved at myself for overeating, how awful I am for not weighing 110 lbs., whined about how I can’t eat like a normal person anymore at age 55, or otherwise wasting time – precious time – talking with my friends, so many good friends….about eating and weight.  Not in person, not online.  For one month. 

WHY DO I THINK THIS IS BRAVE?  I’m at this age/stage of my life where I’ve felt compelled to start every interaction with a justification of how I look and why I don’t look like a 30-year old anymore. It’s not ok to essentially apologizing for myself to start every interaction.  To me it’s brave because I have completely shifted my lens on the world.

WHY:  Because I waste so much time and energy where I could be helping others, learning things, doing things, having meaningful conversations, being supportive, just being in the moment…with all this constant food and weight talk I am taking away from the productive possibilities of my life and my friends’ lives. 

So how do I feel about this?  Well, I miss commiserating, and I’m still working on not “leading” with that foot in every conversation (“let’s talk about food, eating, how much, when, regrets…again?”).  I think I am listening better rather than just winding up to say how upset I am about this that or the other weight thing. 

Can I continue?  I don’t know.  Maybe if we all spent a month on something other than our food and body appearance we could make a lot of changes in the world.

Thank you so much, Sheila!

Public speaking

by Karen, posted in author, friends, no fear

Public speaking has never (ever, ever) been my forte. I remember the first time I had to speak in front of a group of people, in a debate class. I almost fainted from hyperventilation and sheer terror.

Neville author talk, photo by Joanne Nolan
Neville author talk, photo by Joanne Nolan

As an adult, I don’t fare much better (on the inside, at least). I think I’m okay, or okay-ish, but when the time comes, it turns out, I am not, or not-ish.

Have you ever seen the movie, Broadcast News? The scene where Aaron (played by actor Albert Brooks) experiences flop sweats when he does his first live newscast? Well, that was me. Did I mention it was 99 degrees that day? The air conditioner was no match for the room full of people, the heat of the day, and my angst.

Turns out, it didn’t matter. I felt the fear (oh, man, did I!) but I did it anyway.

Everyone who came to listen was very kind and gracious. They all made me feel welcome. They didn’t mind that I had stop to blot my face a couple of times during my talk. Some even gave me some (valuable) feedback about what they thought I did especially well.

For which I am forever grateful.

The BRAVE Interview #1 August 2016: Kathy Eliscu

by Karen, posted in books, Interviews, no fear, The BRAVE Interviews, writing

Hello and welcome to my new series: The BRAVE Interviews! It’s the Who, What, When, Where, How,  (and sometimes Why) of YOUR ‘one brave thing’!

We are kicking off the series with Kathy Eliscu, author of the wonderful book, Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess.

So, let’s get started-

Me and Kathy at Falmouth Library
Me and Kathy at the Falmouth Library, 2016.
  1. WHO are you? A: I’m Kathy Eliscu. I’m a retired RN (from an injury) and have been writing freelance columns for decades. I have a 7-year-long running humor column in Maine called “Lightly Roasted” and am the author of the humor novel “Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess.”
  1. WHAT is your One Brave Thing (so far!!) for 2016? A: I had been scheduled for a brief reading from my book but asked if I could share some of my “serious” unpublished material and was given the go-ahead.
  1. WHEN did you do it? A: This was in May of this year.
  1. WHERE did it occur? A: At the Local Buzz in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
  1. HOW did you make it happen? A: Well…I opened my big mouth and asked.
  1. WHY did you do it?  A: I’ve been working on some serious material for a couple of years but felt very insecure about it. I wanted to push myself to try it out. It just seemed like the right time to take a chance. And I got very good feedback on it, so now I feel I have the impetus to continue to do this kind of work as well as humor writing.   

Thank you so much, Kathy!

Kathy’s wonderful book (which I read and loved!) is available on her website: kathyeliscu.com and at Amazon.com.

 

Not even dark choc cover

*P.S. Sorry! I am not sure who took the above picture!

My first radio interview at Elemental Energies with Chris Ann

by Karen, posted in author, books, local fun, Meditation, Metaphysical healing, my one word, no fear

I had the good luck to be Chris Ann’s Radio adguest on her live radio talk show last night on unitedpaganradio.net (WUPR). What a great experience! Chris Ann made me at home from the moment I entered her studio. We talked about my book and my other writings and doings.

We also discussed ways of manifesting things that you want in your life.  I mentioned different methods I had tried over the years on my path to publishing my book, like making vision boards, meditating, creative visualization. A big one that I forgot to say was MIND MAPPING. I will talk more about this in a separate post.

I was shocked to hear how many listeners we had! There were 20,089 listeners in 129 countries. What the whaaaaatttt??? Isn’t that amazing? 🙂

If you missed the show, you can listen to it here: https://soundcloud.com/karen-maffeo-creamer/k-m-creamer-one-brave-thing-interview-with-chris-ann

I’m happy to share that my book One Brave Thing is now available at Chris Ann’s store, Elemental Energies with Chris Ann and Jeff, 27 North Berwick Road in Wells, ME! Stop in and buy one! While you’re there, pick up a crystal or two, just because!

My one word, 2016 preview

by Karen, posted in friends, my one word, The write words at the write time, writing

January is coming fast. The past several years I have participated in the My One Word project. In a  nutshell, you choose breathea word that ‘will inspire you all year long’. It’s sort of like making New Year’s Resolutions, but simpler. And harder.

It’s not too early to start thinking about your word. You may already know what it is! A word may have sprung to mind the moment you read the phrase. If so, great. Go with it. Trust your gut. Otherwise, you can start paying attention. A word may present itself to you over and over, and then you will know. Yes. Yes, that’s my one word.

This year, my one word is Brave. I have to say that I have pushed myself to try things and go places that I never would have if I wasn’t being brave. Looking back, I am truly amazed! And there are still more than two months left to 2015!

You can keep your one word private, or you can tell some friends. I will say that having told my friend Sheila this year, she reminded me (when I needed to be reminded-you know, whenever I was trying to talk myself out of doing that hard thing? She reminded me I was Being Brave this year, so I had to do it).

If you choose a popular word, like BREATHE (this is NOT going to be my word for 2016; just an example!), you can find plenty of things to keep around you to remind you after January comes and goes that you are doing this.

Need some help choosing your word? Go to pick your word.

Trying something new

by Karen, posted in Angels, fitness, my one word, yoga

I have not been practicing yoga much these past few weeks, since my yoga teacher (you know who llamasyou are!) moved to NC . I drove the road to North Berwick to get to yoga, about a half hour away, over and over and over, and was happy to do it.

I wasn’t familiar with that area at all when I first started going, but I got to know it well enough. It was a nice ride. I got to meet some wonderful women that I might not have met otherwise. I went to shops that I liked on the way home sometimes. It also gave me the opportunity to listen to my audiobook of the moment, which was a nice bonus. (Oh, did I mention I passed a Dunkin Donuts on my way…? I always invite coffee to my yoga practice :).)

Change is hard.

Anyway, I decided to try a new yoga class, and (since I was out of my comfort zone already) a new yoga (to me) entirely: Holy Yoga. My class is in Sanford, and is taught by Susan Hampton (find her website here: soulfulstretch.com).

I was the first to arrive (hello? I am a first-born) and as I was waiting, I started reading the notices on the bulletin board.

It’s important to note here that I am always looking for clues to know that I am in the right place and doing the right thing.

This is what I saw on the board:

  1. Llamas. I LOVE llamas. My husband and I have a collection of about a million (conservative estimate) of them, all different sizes, shapes, colors with one noteable exception: living. None of them are living.
  2. Another posting said something about Brave Girls and my one word this year is BRAVE!
  3. There was a posting about a Drumming Circle and not too long ago someone suggested that I try drumming.

Do you think those are enough clues?? Plus, Susan is a fabulous teacher: welcoming, funny, and caring. All of the other women were lovely. It was a pleasure to be in this class.

 

To boldly go, part one

by Karen, posted in Adult children, family, my one word, teens, Travel

disney blog 1My daughter has been asking to go to Disney since she was about 9 years old. I would always listen to her ask, nod, smile, and say that tried and true line that I’d borrowed from my own mother: “We’ll see.” I got away with that for, oh, 5 years or so. Five years during which she watched many of her friends go to Disney. Five  years during which she watched her older brother go to Disney (in fairness, I never took him either-he was an adult and paid his own way when he went). Five years during which she got older and smarter and my “We’ll see” was starting to fall a little flat, even to my own ears.

A few years ago, she changed her tack; instead of asking to go, she started asking to go for her sixteenth birthday. That changed the game completely. That was a line in the sand. “We’ll see” is timeless, fluid, eternal. “By my sixteenth birthday” was a finish line. I stopped saying, “We’ll see” to my daughter and started thinking, “What if…?” to myself.

Since my one word this year is ‘brave’, the ‘what if’s’ have become more insistent. So what if I haven’t been on a plane in, oh, 25 years or so? So what if my vacation hours at work are precious and few? My daughter will only turn sixteen once. So what if park passes cost more than the airfare? So what if we live far away from an airport with a direct flight to where we are going? So what if the idea of getting us there and back is, um, terrifying?

We’re going.