|
|
|
|
Maybe I'm whimsical
|
|
|
|
|
On Saturday evening I looked briefly into a flickering light and then I spent the next FOUR FRIGGIN DAYS with a migraine that was so intense I seriously considered removing my own head. I took off work. I never take off work. I am a "workaholic". It is known. On the third day, full of piss and vinegar, I squinted at my screen. I'm squinting now. For you. Be pleased.
|
The migraine was a sign that I'm taking everything far too seriously, and I am thus reaffirming my whimsy bones. Trauma needs to be accepted and then made fun of. So ha ha, I've had some trauma and the world is traumatic. If you can't admit it, you can't accept it.
|
Last week I was so sullen that i forgot to brag about my amazing new bookshelf and to exclaim that it is a fulfilment of a lifelong dream! When I was in elementary (aka primary) school, I was a nerd (surprise!) and the kids didn't like me much. The librarian, on the other hand, thought I was a genius. She gave me books and talked to me about them. I remember her neck and her eyes. I used books as an escape. At recess, while other kids were outside, I was laying between the book stacks. Later, in 1991, Disney animated a library in Beauty and the Beast, and I wanted it. In 2017, I facilitated a CoTech event at Wortley Hall, and I spent time in that library, oh you better believe it.
|
I have always imagined that one day I would have a "real" library with a wall of books. And now I do. Just in time for a potential world war and a climate disaster. LOL.
|
|
Maybe I'm steadying
|
|
|
|
|
The palettes of medicine, bandages, hygiene articles, blankets, backpacks, batteries and a thousand other things are stacking in my office building's common spaces. Convoys to the Polish and Slovakian borders are leaving daily. There is a flurry of helpers coming and going. There is only one clipboard in play, but hopefully they will figure that out soon enough.
|
I feel it all. It's work to be me. Reminding myself that I was pretty upset about the US letting the Taliban take over helped me. After taking things too seriously for a while, I have found a little hope and awe. Art helps. Books help. Being surprised helps. Helping others helps. Watching people choose their own fate helps. The world's reaction to Putin has helped.
|
|
Let's just get back to normal. The global pandemic wasn't so normal, but war is. The climate crisis is normal at this point. My brain throws in much ado about nothing. It's time to steady for a few days.
|
|
Maybe I need help?
|
Over the past years, we've noticed that a lot of the charities we work with have a need for similar thinky thinky approaches. We never had the time to put all our stuff together. Since she started, our magical intern has taken our slap-dash resources and tools and turned them into the "Learn with WAO" site. There are templates to help you think, courses about openness and how to run not-boring online meetings, exercises to make work more colourful and fun. If you didn't see our launch this week, do check out Learn with WAO and help us share. You're also very welcome to hit reply and tell me your thoughts. Everything is FREE, it all looks amazeballs, and we'll keep adding to it for evermore.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
