This sticky note is one of my favorite things in our house right now. Stuck haphazardly against a map of Montana in the guest bedroom outside my office, it’s leftover from a workshop I squeezed myself through after a continuing education experience in Vienna this October that was among the more difficult experiences of my adult life (more on that later).
When I came home from Austria, I had covid, and the week of isolation allowed me to start processing. Hundreds of sticky notes, multiple books, and so many articles, texts, calls and slack messages with dear friends and colleagues later, I reanchored myself.
Soon, I found sparks between the ideas and questions embodied on those colored squares. They led to synapses connecting that experience with things I’d learned so long ago they were invisible until Vienna brought them to the surface.
And yet, this one sticky remains, uncharacteristically crooked. (Chaos pilot here: I 💜 creating order from messes, and for me, tidy sticky notes represent alignment of seemingly divergent ideas).
Conflict and chaos, as we know, can lead to renewed hope, belief and commitment.
As I see photos from friends of flooding in Maine and look out the window here, where it was -40 at dawn, I wonder: Will this renew our energy to problem-solve together for our shared future? What will it take? And why?
Why?
p.s. The lamp is reflecting the zone of Montana I hope to explore, learn about, and make friends in this year.
