Sometimes you are right on time
I hate being late. I hate that feeling of being stuck in traffic when you know someone is waiting for you. That terrible feeling of being on a stopped train, in a tunnel, under the river, when a meeting is starting without you. Or just the everyday flurry of activity as I race out the door a solid six minutes behind schedule. That being said, I am always relieved when someone I am meeting is a few minutes late. It reminds me that they are human too. It reminds me that I am not alone in my magical thinking or in my overbooking and it allows me to relax and be myself.
This newsletter is late. I wanted to get something out in June and well it’s the end of July. But I am human, just like you and here we are. And one thing I have been learning both professionally and personally recently is that every once in a while, (especially when it comes to your own arbitrary deadlines) you may think you are running late, but really you are right on time.
Take my trip to Northern Ireland in May for instance. I have not been back to Belfast since 2011, after living there and working for PeacePlayersfrom 2008-2010. I had plenty of good excuses, (remember covid?) but I still felt bad that it took so long to visit a place that means so much to me. Getting there in May, I realized that my trip was actually right on time.
Belfast was filled with (many) cups of tea, a few pints and wonderful meals with old friends, former colleagues and mentors. The trip reminded me of the bold, caring and funny woman I was when I lived there. And being in NI provided me with some timely insights about my past work and it gave some inspiration for my future.
Of course, I am not trying to say that everything always works out in the end. Sometimes the timing will never be right, no matter how much we may want it to be. And being late to the party can have real consequences. But living like you are late for everything, is also not the answer.
And being a few minutes late to a coffee date or a month late in getting your newsletter out, well that only makes you human.
So what have I been doing with my time the past few months? Here are a few highlights:
In May, I took my facilitation abroad and did a workshop on Play for the team at PeacePlayers - Northern Ireland
In July, I facilitated Lunch Pods for the staff at the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) Albany Field Office
I have been on the move for the U.S Soccer Foundation, facilitating Coach as Mentor trainings for organizations in NYC, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Pennsylvania
Saying that there is a lot going on in U.S. Politics at the moment is the understatement of the year. But there are some timely and important initiatives in the works that we can all stand behind!
One is a bi-partisan bill recently introduced in Congress called the Building Civic Bridges Act (BCBA). Please reach out to you representatives here to encourage them to support the BCBA!
And speaking of building some metaphorical bridges, stay tuned for some information on a Dinner & Dialogue: Dinners of Hope series that I will be holding at the Honest Weight Food Co- op in the months leading up to the election.