Author: Anne

What one person carries easily, another person cannot bear.  We join strength with strength.  A single stick is easily broken.  Two sticks together are harder to snap.  Together we bear our own and each other's burdens better, and we understand when the other must go it alone.  Sometimes holding is simply the ability to see a bigger picture.  Sometimes holding is support and nurturing help, and sometimes holding is holding back and letting things be.  In retrospect that latter is often sensed as profound help though in the present we might feel it as counter intuitive.  We are, after all, still present for one another though we are not "doing anything."Quote by Gunilla Norris, SHELTERED IN THE HEARTHer book:  https://gunillanorris.com/books/sheltered-in-the-heart/REFLECTION:Can you discern when to support and nurture or when to hold back and let things be?Is there a situation you are facing (or a friend) now that may require support?Is there a situation you are facing (or supporting a friend through) where you should hold back?Take some time to discern the best approach - even if it is just being present!

View of Clinton Hut from the highest peak on the Milford track "We all wait in life for things to get easier.  Think in your own life if you've waited for something to get easier... oh, I just got to get through this and then it'll be easy.. it's what we do.  We wait for stuff to get easier.  It will never get easier.  What happens is you handle hard better.  It never gets easier.. you become someone that handles hard stuff better.  That's a mental shift that has to occur in each of (y)our brains.  It has to shift." Kara Lawson, Duke Women's Coach... from a pep talk for her team.   To get inspired, watch this video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDzfZOfNki4  REFLECTION: Are you waiting for things to get easier? What experiences have you had where you "handled hard better?" Is there something happening in your life now that requires a mental shift to be able to handle it differently? Try on a mental shift.

Cherry blossoms in bloom around the Tidal basin in Washington DC Anyone can listen.  All you have to do is stop talking.  But to be a good listener, you have to stop talking and be interested.  Genuine curiosity is the precursor to understanding, and a good listener helps the other person feel understood.Quote by James Clear from his book ATOMIC HABITS.  To learn more, visit: https://jamesclear.com/REFLECTION:Are you a good listener?Are you curious when engaged in a conversation with another?Practice being curious when talking with someone today and note what happens.