big rocks first

February 21, 2016 - Daily Notes, From the Editor

Today is Sunday. I went to visit my niece, Faye.

She is two years old and has been a budding photographer since the tender age of eleven weeks. You think I'm exaggerating, but the way she gripped my Nikon with her tiny hands in exactly the right place and pulled her nearly-newborn face closer to the eyehole that day gave me shivers. The good kind.

There is list of all of the things I "should" be doing today for Lucia.

There is also a story about a teacher who has a jar filled to the brim with rocks, sand, and water. One day he pours it all into a bucket and asks his students to fill the jar back up using all of the original contents. The students put the water and sand back in first, then start adding the small rocks. They discover soon the jar has already become so full that the big rocks no longer fit.

The teacher says, "Remember this. It is not a lesson about rocks, but about your life. If you fill your life with the small rocks first (things like work) you will soon discover there is not enough room for the big rocks (things like meaningful relationships, love, and nieces).

Today was Sunday. My heart feels happy. I chose a big rock first.

xo
laura

a valentine state of mind

February 12, 2016 - Daily Notes, From the Editor

Last night I taught yoga at the women's shelter. They always thank me profusely for coming, as though I am the one doing the favor, as though I am the one doing the giving. Last night I was given a card signed by the staff, and chocolates.

What they don't know, what they cannot know, is how deeply I receive on Thursday nights. How I am filled and that I return to this moment in time and space to remember who I am, what has happened in my life, why I do everything I do, and what matters the most. 

Two mamas came to the candlelit class. Their babies were in the next room, another volunteer watches the children while we do yoga. We could hear them laughing, asking questions, playing through the walls.

"How does your body feel?" I asked both women, before we began. 

I heard them say, "tired," "old," "failing me," "overweight," "exhausted," and "I came to yoga tonight because I know I need to move, but I kind of just want to lay here for an hour and breathe and look at the ceiling."

So we breathed together gently and felt for our heartbeats. "Your heart can detect the other heartbeats around you and it begins to mimic them," I heard myself say.

We envisioned the tiny muscles all up and down our spines. We imagined them as connected directly to our belly buttons. We felt them working to hold us steady as we moved slowly, mindfully, with so much self-reverence and respect. We stayed close to the ground. Every so often we paused to feel our heartbeats again.

Savasana was fifteen minutes long. As the class ended, the doors opened and their little ones poured in, vibrant and energetic. "Mama! Look!" 

They had little Valentine's Day bags of presents and candies they'd been given. They were eager to show me, too. I sat there on my knees for several minutes, taking in the entire scene. Happy children. Relaxed (for a moment) mamas. There was so much love. More love that I have been physically close to for weeks now. It nearly brought me to tears except that my smile was so huge. 

We are all in this mess together. All of us. If you remember one thing this Valentine's Day, let it be this: Your heart is connected in a very real and visceral way to everyone else on the planet.

If you're lucky enough to be with someone you love on Sunday, feel for it and notice how awesome it is. If you're not, please know that all you have to do is head to a coffee shop, or a yoga class, or a bookstore, or a playground, or nature, and witness. Close your eyes and feel your heartbeat. It's connected. We all are. 

xo
laura

communications

February 3, 2016 - Daily Notes

A voicemail with a British accent this morning. Someone from The Economist inviting me to attend a forum. His words were crisp and soft at the same time. The polite cadence had pauses to emphasize the time-sensitive nature of his message and there was sincerity when he said, "Have a great day today." The whole thing lasted forty seconds. It shifted my perspective.

I've been struggling, as many of you know, to balance my need to make a living with my desire to take this magazine, Lucia, from beautiful fledgling to the full expression of wings-spread-wide flight. I make my living today by working in public relations. My clients are innovative companies, teams of smart people making exciting things happen as they grow. When friends ask me, "What do you actually do?" it is challenging to respond succinctly. There is a one word answer, though, and it is this: communication.

I communicate.

It is an art, a science, a process, a talent, and a skill that can be learned, honed, applied, and made into almost anything you can imagine. It is also time-consuming and energy-dependent, especially to do it well, especially to for fast-moving companies. It requires not just time, but also attention, focus, thoughtfulness, curiosity, creativity, flexibility, availability, and ability to think fast and smart.

We are all communicators. Our words are our art but they are also much more. Every text we type, every email we push, every voicemail we leave, matters. Each time we convey information to another human being we are changing the world. Words are important. Delivery is important. What you say and how you say it creates the world we all live in.

Remember this today, as you go about the balancing act of your life. Your words are crucial. They are changing the world. Which words will you choose? Where will they come from? How will you deliver them? 

xo
laura