Friday, November 13

Volume 13! On the 13th! I saw a meme yesterday anticipating Friday the 13th of 2020, lol. :D What a particularly stellar opportunity to share some light, eh? Let’s begin!

shining on at lightward.com/newsletter

 

Wellness for you, and me

A cherished, cherished memory from my 30th birthday. Thank you, @chuyphoto!

Hello fellow breathing humans! How many moments have you taken to breathe this week? I know, life can feel overwhelming – there’s plenty to feel uncertain about, and if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere you’re starting to see shorter days. But we can handle it. :) Breath work is an incredible tool we all have access to, for calming our brains and coming back to ourselves. So, when you feel overwhelmed in the next week or if you simply want to relax and feel good for a few moments, use your breath! It’s free! :D When you’re inhaling and exhaling through your nose (the nose is important!), focus on how incredible it is that we are BREATHING! That this simple thing provides us with the beautiful experience of being alive! That we’ve been doing this since the moment of birth! Take all that wonder, and bring it into your breath work. Our lives can be inundated with a lot of negativity, but we do not have to absorb it and keep it – we have such a powerful ability to create our thoughts and experiences, so use that to your advantage while you breathe.

This next week, practice inhaling for 5 seconds and exhaling for 5 seconds, for 5 minutes straight, while focusing on wonder. Let me know what you find. :)

FULL OF WONDER

I enjoy writing about wellness, in all its forms. I enjoy it because I really savor experiencing and experimenting with it, and with the benefits that come from investing in it.

I’m passionate about living an incredible life – and I think this comes from having lived in pain for so long! I’ve always been an extremely energetic, outgoing person, but I spent a lot of my life in internal turmoil. Well into my 20s, I was living in the closet, hating what I looked like, not really knowing what I needed to be healthy, looking at other people’s lived experiences as better than mine, running an internal dialogue that was everything but life-giving, living with depression and anxiety, experiencing physical pain from being obese. And if you knew me then, you wouldn’t have guessed any of it because of how I showed up. I think that origin is why I’m a hardcore Ennegram 3 today.

I also think it’s why I don’t take any day for granted anymore. And it’s why I view this life with a perspective of joy, if you will 😉, and a perspective of WONDER.

I’ve always been a dreamer. And to be honest, for years and years and years, that dreamer was silenced by the immense weight of darkness and doubt. It kept me from fully stepping into the joy that comes from believing anything is possible. But that was not the end of my story. The last five years have gifted me with a radical transformation within, allowing me to heal and create space for the desires I’ve always had to emerge with gusto, with vitality, ready to dance

And through all of this hard work – which often happens alone, in the quiet spaces of the soul – I’ve become more aware of how WONDER-FULL life is. I’m noticing, more every day, how my thoughts and focus on wonder have literally changed my life. When we take a step back and notice how incredible it really is to be alive, our thoughts start to shift and move towards a direction of health, joy and power. I sometimes think to myself, how can I not be wowed by the feeling of sunlight on my skin? How can I not be tearfully grateful when I hear my friends tell me I love you? How can I not be moved when I watch people show up for themselves? Let us not forget, y’all, that this life is full of wonder and magic every single day. And if we choose to focus on that wonder, even if for a moment every day, our lives will dramatically improve!

And while I still experience pain, negative emotions, experiences, all of that, my focus on wonder is the forefront of my experience. I choose to view this lived experience as a wonderful one, filled with endless opportunities and joyful experiences that commences from my thoughts. And the more I do, the easier it is to find more and more reasons to experience wonder-full joy.

So in the next week, I encourage you to pause and notice how much wonder is around you and in you. Be watchful for it, and breathe it in wherever you find it. Let me know how it goes. :)

I believe in you, fully.

Abe

 

Bright things

Strongly suggested listening:
Chasing the Sun, by Sara Bareilles

You said,
Remember that life is
Not meant to be wasted
We can always be chasing the sun

Current mood. ☝️

I don’t have a ton to say today, y’all – I’m just happy, haha. :D The sun is shining in on us while we’re writing, I have this puerh tea from the local tea shop produced by an 81-year-old tea master in Yunnan Province. (Kristen, if you’re reading this, thank you for turning me onto tea.)

It’s just good. 🥰

I came across this idea a few weeks ago: “You are exactly as happy as you decide to be.” I’ve taken it to heart. So many ways to argue with this line, but I decided to just try accepting it to see how far I can take it.

I’ve taken it pretty far. ;) Give it a try this week! Don’t argue with it (though you totally could), just roll with it. When you notice yourself not happy, remember the experiment, and decide to choose happier.

This idea, I think, is a big reason why I got through the entire election week without being emotionally owned by it. I was engaged, I was informed, and I don’t think my stress hormones went up at all. And also, the last couple of days have been very long and very varied, and I’ve had a great time – and, as Abe reminded me, this is a situation where last year’s edition of Isaac would have been in a horrible headspace. (Abe, reading over my shoulder: “Horrible!”)

Progress!

“This is the real secret of life – to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”
Alan W. Watts, via @kellycavillo 😘

That’s the whole deal. I’m happy. I love you. “There is great love for you here”, to borrow another line. Breathe deep, allow yourself to let go of all the weight you’ve been carrying, and just take in the sun. (If you’re in Chicago, interpret that metaphorically.)

I leave you with this, my playlist of shit that makes me feel amazing. Here it is on Spotify, and here it is on YouTube. Enjoy, be it this or something else. ;)

 

A Perspective of Joy

It’s Abe! :) I wrote this on my Facebook this past week:

I sent 11 copies of my coffee table book, A Perspective of Joy, to folks across the US and in Australia! 11 copies on 11/11!

I love celebrating. I think it’s paramount to enjoying this beautiful life. So one day, when we are speaking internationally about joy and positivity and living fully or when our future books are bestsellers, I’ll always remember celebrating the big and small moments along the way.

Find my book here: lightward.com/joy

What’s really cool about this project is that it represents my movement from doubt to execution. I let the first edition of this book sit in my home, unmoving, for almost 4 years because I was scared to show up and talk about what I know – joy. :)

I’m grateful for those of you who have supported this project. I’ve sold 13 copies so far (13 for the 13th!), and I mean this with every ounce of my being: I celebrate every single purchase. I don’t take small moments for granted. You know me, I love celebrating. :)

The holidays are coming up, and I know this book will bring some joy into your home or the homes of people you love! You can purchase your copy here: lightward.com/joy.

 

Commence!

I was asked to give one of the keynote speeches for Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) this past week. I addressed students from over 100 countries who are a part of a program where students develop initiatives to tackle some of our world’s most pressing challenges. While this keynote speech was directed towards CGI U participants, on the occasion of their commencement, I believe my call-to-action towards the end of the speech is for everyone to hear. :) You can listen to the full six minute speech here!

 

And finally, a podcast

The podcast, really. ;) Empowered Human Academy is going strong. We believe, hard, in each of these episodes; each one is a substantive reminder to live your empowerment, the empowerment which is your birthright.

Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and everywhere else, or watch on YouTube. A friend told us yesterday that it’s a whole other level of compelling when you’re able to watch the humans in these conversations, so hit that up if that’s your thing too. :D

Find more at empoweredhumanacademy.com. ❤️

 

I (and we) are writing this from a deep well of contentment, hopefulness, optimism, positive expectation and belief, enthusiasm, eagerness, happiness, passion, joy, appreciation, empowerment, freedom, and love. Each of us have access to each of those things. They are yours, because you are alive. :) You are alive: take it and run.