Don't Forget to Fly!

Superhero of Love Boot Camp is Back in Session

I have had a week of tears.  They weren't all sad tears, most were the really good ones that come from being moved or inspired.  Some just happened to come during professional meetings for a couple of creative projects.  So, while they are proof that my heart is open and full, they were a wee bit inconvenient, like today.

I was being interviewed by a lovely friend, Ted Lyde, for his podcast.  At the end of the interview I was acknowledging him for being a superhero dad and husband.  He is one very moving dude, but I'm not sure he was up for tears on his mostly comedic podcast!

Ted has been married 23 years, has a son and a daughter, and his son is disabled.  Ted has had to face his fears, his push-back against being in charge of the lives of his precious children, and his basic humanity around parenting.   He's had to look at some uncomfortable pieces of himself to negotiate the daddy seas, that everyone  knows can get choppy from time to time.   And, when dealing with disabilities, the waters can become quite treacherous. 

But even the simple daddy chores can call for heroic responses.  Ted was describing the delicate balance he tries to achieve with encouraging his daughter to really know her true power while giving her the reality check warning that she may run into people from time to time who won't share his, her mom's, or her friends' view of her, and that that's OK.   What spectacular coaching, which I wish on some level my dad had given me: not everyone is going to like you and that's just dandy.

I told Ted that I had uncovered a wound only a week ago around the issue of being liked.  I have a hard time when people I like don't like me back.  It happened last week, that a friend of two years came to this conclusion.   I wondered how at my age I was so affected by him no longer liking me. 

So, I dug in and went back to Superhero of Love Boot Camp.  I did a Debbie Ford-inspired shadow exercise.  I had done Debbie's Shadow Process workshop years ago and still actively use the techniques I learned.  This work is mentioned throughout my book Superhero of Love: Heal Your Broken Heart & Then Go Save the World.   I think shadow work is so helpful to coming into our light, our full power, and to opening up our hearts to love and be loved as much as possible.

So, the Ford-inspired question I asked myself was "When was another time that I felt that I wasn't liked, that devastated me like this?"  My memory immediately shot to a place I would never have imagined.  My dad moved to Alaska when I was 11 years old.   I never had been conscious that my 11 year old brain made his moving to Alaska mean that he didn't like me.   It wasn't, of course, the truth, but it was what my little girl self thought was the truth.  It was the story I made up about it to have it all make sense.
 
Ironically, one of my favorite memories of my dad was not long after I gave birth to that shadow self, during one of my first summers I spent with him in Alaska.  We were leaning against his truck and he said "I know you know I love you.  And, I know you love me.  But I want to be sure you know that I actually really like you."  I will never forget that moment for as long as I live.  Yet, the year before, very likely at the moment he told me he was moving, my 11 year old said "He doesn't like me. If he really liked me he wouldn't move so far away."

I had a good long cry for that little girl.  I felt like a bad parent who left her on the side of the road all those years ago.  After my cry was over, the pain in my heart completely disappeared.  The world was no longer collapsing because a friend no longer liked me.  That shadow self, born at age 11, whose disempowering mantra "he doesn't like me" had been partially running my life, and used to grab the wheel from time to time, like it did last week.  Uncovering this shadow, though, I no longer have to be disempowered when someone doesn't like me.  She will always be there.  Our shadows don't disappear.  But, now that I am conscious of her and her mantra, I can listen to her concerns, but not let her drive the car.  She's not even 16, after all!   

When Ted and I were talking about this today, I remembered that a Shadow Process workshop is coming up in Los Angeles on December 5th through 7th.  I couldn't more highly recommend this workshop if you are looking for more freedom and power in your life.  It was a very big part of my Superhero of Love training.  It is work I will always practice because it allowed me to love and be loved more than ever before.

Check it out here:  The Shadow Process

Every Inch of You is Perfect From the Bottom to the Top

Every Superhero of Love needs to know:

Every
Inch
Of
You
Is
Perfect
From
The
Bottom
To
The
Top

Superhero of Love Territory = The Happy Marriage

My latest HuffPo article inspired by and endless list of friends:

http://huff.to/1p7CtHP

Let me know what you think!

LOVE!

Raising Lions in Your House: Parenting is a Hero's Journey

 

I innocently went to meet a new friend for dinner the other night.   She is accomplished writer/comedienne, Julie Larson.  Hilarious and wonderful, Julie filled me with many Wolfgang Puckian delights at Chinois on Main in Santa Monica while she told me stories.  Life was good.   We went back to her house for what I thought would be a brief introduction to her husband and then I planned to be on my way. I assumed he’d be a lovely guy.  After all he had offered to make us homemade pizza, which we ended up not needing, due to the Puckian delights.  But Julie also told me he works with kids who have behavioral challenges which is, of course, hero’s work, so the odds were stacked neatly in his favor.

Joe Newman is a wee bit more than a lovely guy though.  He is a Superhero of Love transforming the lives of children who have otherwise been deemed challenging at best, untamable at worst.   Joe knows these kids, inside and out, because he was one of them. 

Diagnosed with ADHD at age 7, Joe was one of the first round of 30,000 kids who were put on Ritalin in the 70’s.  While Ritalin allowed him to remain in public school, creating less of a disturbance than before, it didn’t equip him to gain mastery over a brain that worked a little differently than others.  It definitely didn’t help him learn more.  And, any slight positive effects on his behavior decreased as he got older.  Overall it delayed his healing.

But in his quest to find himself and his own way in the world, Joe figured out how to retrain his own brain with self-imposed behavioral changes and challenges.  Soon the kid who dropped out of college after 7 weeks and hadn’t read more than 5 books cover to cover before age 30 went back to college and ended up with a master’s degree.

Joe wanted to help other kids like him with his newfound wisdom.  He also uncovered his knack for dealing with the parents of these kids who need training and support.   He routinely help parents support their kids getting off anti-depressants, anti-psychotics and ADHD meds, some because of misdiagnoses, some because of the retraining of their brains.  Child psychiatrists and psychologists routinely recommend his services and praise his book “Raising Lions” for its wisdom and clear advice.

Joe told me of one young girl who had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and ADHD, among other diagnoses.  She was heavily medicated and spent half of her school day in a padded cell due to her unmanageable behavior.  After several months of working with Joe she was getting straight A’s, was off the drugs and completely, happily assimilated full time in her classroom. 

I think it’s no big news that we are managing children’s behavioral issues with drugs in many cases because the adults in their lives simply don’t have the tools to help meet their needs.   Of course it isn’t for lack of trying.  If you haven’t been exposed to the right tools, you are lost. I have friends in this very situation.   They have tried every therapy and drug, read every book and they haven’t cracked the code on their kids’ neurology.

At least my friends’ kids are getting consistent love and attempts at support.  But during our chat Joe told me the statistics on our country’s overmedication of the notoriously under-parented, foster population.   In a recent San Jose Mercury News series on the over use of psychotropic drugs on  foster kids (http://webspecial.mercurynews.com/druggedkids/) notes, beyond other unfathomable statistics, that in California an astonishing 48% of foster kids ages 0 to 11, and 62% of foster kids ages 12 to 18 are on antipsychotics. 

Early in his career, when he worked at a summer camp for 290 of the toughest behavior problem children in the country he was called “Crisis Joe.”  Well, this crisis has reached epic proportions in this country, and thank God Crisis Joe is on the scene to help us all push to the other side, to a place where kids are truly thriving, inside and out. 

I’ve already bought a few copies for friends – even parents of kids over 18, who are still struggling at home.   I’ve also given the book to friends with kids who do not have behavioral issues, who merely have strong-willed kids.  When we find tools that can support any child living a more vibrant, engaged life, I think it is our duty to share them.  Every parent could glean something helpful for their child from “Raising Lions” as every parent is pushed by a child at one point or another to attend to them in such a way that they feel unequipped to respond like the superhero their kids think they are.  Since I’m in the business of supporting all of us tapping into our inner superheroes, I couldn’t stay mum about Joe for more than a few days. 

To find out more about Joe Newman and his book go to http://raisinglions.com/.

To purchase his book on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Raising-Lions-Joe-Newman/dp/1453639683/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1409882747&sr=1-1&keywords=raising+lions

 

Volcanic Love Flow: The Hendricks Factor

If you live in Chicago, Portland or Ottawa, something very hot is flowing in your direction one day very soon.  A couple of weeks ago I attended the Hendricks Institutes workshop entitled "The Conscious Loving and Living Essentials: The 3-Day Seminar" in Ventura, California, and there are three more of these workshops scheduled this year in those fine bergs.  If you are looking to either heat up your relationship or light a fire in your heart and soul, this might be a great sparkler to grab.

 

I did this workshop with Katie Hendricks because I am preparing myself to have a kick-ass powerful relationship, and I wanted to clear the way for it to come on in!   I have spent some time, since my last relationship, in Superhero of Love training.   As trite as it may sound, I had a hot and juicy time falling in love with me these last couple years.  Now I'm on to the wild and wonderful road to becoming a Superhero of Love in relationship. 

 

The first step was to look at anything that might be blocking the "flow" to bringing that Superhero of Love into my orbit.  This workshop is all about creating flow in love and in life.   As in all great workshops I have attended, I was led to shine light on the dark and dusty corners, and to take off blinders that I had firmly placed on my own eyes when I wasn't looking.  (Yes, we humans are very tricky that way.)

 

Things that used to be just out of my view became crystal clear, so that I could either let them go or heal them.  I got to the bottom of some inherited beliefs about marriage.   As much work as I have done on myself, I had never really noticed that every single memory I have of my parents together before they divorced when I was 7 years old, either featured loud yelling or silent bitter tensions. 

 

My memories of each of my parents with me alone are positive, but the chemical mixture that made up their marriage was a scary and dangerous recipe.  So, even though I am surrounded by long-term, loving marriages, this one core belief that marriage was dangerous and scary was a certain roadblock.  This workshop restored the possibility of a life-long partnership, and unequivocally removed some blocks.  The tides have shifted.  The men are starting to come ashore!

 

The surprising benefit of the workshop, though, is that it created flow in my work life.  I guess I missed the word "Life" in the workshop title.  Blinders can be so effective.

 

Right after the workshop I needed to do a final polish of my book, and I was not looking forward to it at all.  I wondered what more I would catch, how much clarity I would have after looking at it for months on end. I was delighted to discover that I had fun doing the final polish!  What fresh heaven is this?

 

Then, more miraculous workshop side effects ensued.  I was told I needed to up my game on social media for my potential publisher.  I had never considered Twitter a joy-filled experience, and had not even dared to check out Quora.  Now I'm having a blast on both.  Quora is my brand new playground that just completely turns me on in every way.  My heart and mind are awakened, and the ideas are definitely flowing like Niagara Falls.

 

And then there was the office furniture side effect of the weekend.  One of the access points to flow that Katie Hendricks taught over the course of the weekend was bringing flow into our bodies.  For instance, it's really hard to stay tense and serious about an argument, about a tough writing task - or anything -- when you are wiggling around.  Katie sat on a hilarious little tuffet for the course of the workshop. 

 



 

 

The minute I got home I bought one - an ErgoErgo Stool.  I get to wiggle and flow all day long while I work.  It's impossible to stay tense on this magical perch.  And, believe it or not I have not once missed the back of my previous lovely fancy office chair, because this stool gives me energy.  The fun rocking and wiggling I do while I work keeps the energy flowing late into the night.

 

And, that's the bottom line of what I got from the Hendricks' training: we can have a lot more fun and flow with this thing we call life.   Love can be hot lava flowing in all the right directions.  Life can be "but a dream" as you wind down the river, transforming as you twist and turn with the wind.   

 

As the song says "Let your love flow...," however you find the inspiration.  It can only have a good effect on you in many ways, and on everyone around you.

I Have a Friend who is a Superhero Cop

My dear friend is not only a brilliant writer, he is not just a good cop, he's a great cop.  He wrote this brilliant piece.  He will remain anonymous for obvious reasons, but I wanted to share it for as many to see as possible:


Ferguson, Missouri is about 2,000 miles away. Yesterday, my wife overheard someone on the sidewalk near her office tell his friend "Kill a cop, save a life." 

I've never abused or mistreated anyone in my life. If I saw that happen, I would do everything in my power to stop it. 

I've been filmed doing my job countless times. I don't care. I usually laugh and say go for it. Make sure you get my good side, and send me the link so I can see if I look cool on YouTube. Hell, it just happened Tuesday morning. Didn't bother me a bit, because I know what I'm doing is right and proper.

My job is to stand for others who are unable to stand for themselves. To stop evil and protect the innocent. I don't want to hurt anybody. Force is applied only to protect myself or others, in response to force that is used against me, or in the minimum amount necessary to lawfully arrest someone.

I can't think of a quicker way to destroy a good case or my career than to improperly use force on someone, and I would no sooner unnecessarily hurt a person than I would lead the Macy's parade in the nude.

I've been doing this for a long time. If you think killing me or one of my friends will save someone's life, you're very wrong, but if we bump into each other during the course of my duties, I won't abuse or mistreat you, and if you've committed no crimes, you'll be on your way.

But don't try to kill me. You'll find that difficult, and you won't like how it ends.

Superhero Mantra: Everything is Perfect

Everything
Is
Perfect

 

(Yes! Everything, Everything, Everything!)

 

I shared this mantra with a friend who is just recently divorced. This week she and her two kids moved into their new home.  In the face of those circumstances, and many of the slip-slidey circumstances we are thrown into as humans, it's sometimes hard to believe that everything is perfect.   

But my friend is a Superhero of Love in training.  She is taking it on with gusto.   She reported that she is using the above mantra "All the time....When I feel most sad - and when I'm feeling grateful - when the kids climb into my bed at 4:30am!" 

Honestly, I think "EVERYTHING IS PERFECT" is the best Superhero of Love mantra for two reasons:  1) It keeps you in the present and 2) It thwarts our very human need to label difficulties as bad and wrong.  

And when you live by it, you get little proof puddles that you can splash in from time to time. 

Like today.   I've been managing my Uncle's estate for the last few weeks.  He died as a result of injuries sustained in a bad car accident, which was caused by a heart attack.  He and I had been estranged since my dad died four years ago.  There were healthy reasons for that separation that don't matter here, except that my being the most appropriate person to handle this drew up some less than savory feelings.  Mostly I felt love and compassion, but when I was on hold with Social Security for 1.5 hours, I will admit I was cursing my fate and my uncle.  I had to keep veering myself toward the mantra:  "Yes, my dear, even THIS is perfect!"

My aunt is next of kin but she doesn't have the means to pay for the expenses associated with his death, so I've been doing that.  I knew it was the right thing to do.  His brother, my dad, would definitely say it was the right thing to do - up to a point.  But we hadn't reached "a point" yet.  It really was all perfect because it all needed to be done and I could do it. 

Yesterday, though, my Aunt called me specifically to firmly insist that she wants my Uncle to reimburse me for my expenses, i.e., she wants his life insurance proceeds (that she will be receiving) to pay me back. I protested.  She truly needs the money --all of it.  She insisted.  I agreed to talk about it down the line. 

I just got my Uncle's "effects" in today's mail.  I am assuming his clothes were cut off and he had arrived at the ER as a John Doe, because his wallet wasn't in his pants when they extricated him from the car.  So the envelope contained a belt and a huge wad of cash.  Total: $789.23. 

Once I pay for some shipping costs, the sum total I will have spent up to this week will quite possibly total up to the exact amount found in his pocket.

Wild stuff, this perfection, eh?

An Honest to God Real Life Superhero: Kathy Eldon

Check out my latest Huffington Post article -- particularly if you know someone who has ever suffered a loss:

Click here for HuffPo Article!

 

This lovely woman, Kathy Eldon, lost her son, Dan, in the pre-Blackhawk Down incident in Somaiia in 1993, when he was only 22.

How she has dealt with the loss with the superpowers we all have inside us. 

Oh to Be Easily Amused & Enthused!

I stumbled upon a beauty secret ...and the secret to attracting Italian men on my recent trip to Rome and Puglia!

Check out my latest HuffPo article on the topic!

http://
Huffington Post: Oh To Be Easily Amused & Enthused!


And here's a bonus pic of three of my friends being easily amused and enthused just outside our villa!

Kryptonite can be GOOD for Superheroes of Love

I hit a love snag.  I stepped in a pool of kryptonite.  But, the good news is two-fold: 1) I knew to get myself immediately back into Superhero of Love Boot Camp to re-exercise those muscles, and 2) I have proof that I have a lot more power around love kryptonite than I ever have before. 

Check out my New HuffPo Article  on this little adventure!

And check out the band I discovered during this adventure!   I refer to my ex as Mr. X in "Superhero of Love" so it's no mystery that I absolutely miraculously happened upon my new favorite band: X Ambassadors.  I mention a song in the HuffPo article, but this one is what I am calling my new anthem for re-entering the dating jungle!!!  It has NOTHING to do with love/dating but it is emblematic of how hitting kryptonite has actually kicked my internal power up a notch.  My internal reference to the dating world being a jungle is uttered with a wry smile, I assure you. 

Oh my god I love this song!  New video just out today! 

JUNGLE - X Ambassadors

lso, remix with Jay Z if you are a big Jay Z fan:JUNGLE - Jay Z Remix

Zhena Muzyka is a Bona Fide Superhero of Love

Check out my HuffPo article on her new book....it's definitely Superhero of Love fodder and inspiration:

http://huff.to/1jutHUG

Compassion: A Superpower

I had never had a shoe shine in a chair before.  But I had some time to kill before hopping the Acela train between D.C. and N.Y. the other day, and my boots were crying out for a shine.  Ty Davis had his work cut out for him: leather, suede, plenty of buckles. 

As I sat there a steady stream of men moved in and out of the chair to my right under the fine care of stand owner Dave Kirkley. Ty worked his magic with my demanding boots.  Polish, rags, suede brushes, more polish, more rags and then for the piece de resistance a lighter to burn the tiny errant threads from the zipper's edge. He was nothing short of an artist.  

I broke the ice, confessing I was a shoe shine chair virgin.  He told me I was doing just fine, and then asked me where I was from.  When I confessed Los Angeles, he replied instantly,  "Well you've got some drama goin' on out there, don't you?"  referring to the Donald Sterling debacle.

I asked both Ty and Dave if they dealt with a lot of racism in their jobs and they said they had but most often dealt with more generic power issues.  Mostly, though, they were delighted to just do a good job no matter how powerful the person they served or how little they were acknowledged. 

I had noticed that the men who filtered in and out of the chair to my right barely uttered a syllable.  I had seen this phenomenon before while waiting for planes or trains.  I would be transfixed by these little oases reserved for manly men to go through this nearly silent ritual, all communications simply understood.  These days the ever present devices create even more of a disconnect from the humans offering this fairly intimate service.  The men hardly ever look up, let alone make eye contact.  It seems slightly obscene really.

Ty and Dave get to see a lot of humanity so they have some very special views about things, including this Mr. Sterling fellow.  They both, though, in nearly musical concert, defended him to some degree: he grew up with those ideas, they are ingrained in every fiber of his being, so he is just being his most Sterling self.   They said it with a compassion that only long time witnesses of such a wild stream of humanity can muster. They believe everyone is doing their best.   Plus, the NBA took care of the fact that Sterling dissed the very men who made his team successful.  

Still, they have more compassion than I would muster in their position - the Mother Teresas of Shoe Shine - doing their very best to make the rest of us shine as much as possible, sometimes in spite of ourselves.  

Superheroes of Love roam far and wide.

Move Over, Abe

I get to D.C. a couple times a year and never leave the city without visiting my Boyfriend Abe.  As was confirmed a couple of years ago by one of the park rangers who watches over him, he is IN THERE!  I always take a million pictures of him, because like anyone we love, we can never get enough of them, right?

This time it was dusk and coming up the mall toward him I shot a million photos because he just looked so exquisite in the fading light.  The rain had just stopped, and it was late enough that the kiddie population had thinned.  

Somehow this time it looked like he was waiting for me.  I, of course, silently told him how much I adored him, and like any insane lover of a dead man, I attempted a selfie with him towering over my shoulder.  I will spare you that one.

Standing at his feet I said "Hmmm....what messages might you have for me, darling dearest?" and -- again like any insane lover of a dead man I heard him reply. 

He said "Great things are coming!"  Lovely.  A while later I skipped off into the night with the loveliest misty rain showering down upon me and walked for about an hour through the quiet D.C. streets. 

Seventy two hours later something truly great did happen.  I was reconnected (by a very special friend) with a man I had a mad crush on almost 30 years ago.   The most extraordinary thing about him is that he shares some of Abe's lovely traits, the most important of which is that he thinks my above-mentioned insanity is adorable.   

I imagine that Abe thought Mary Todd's insanity was slightly adorable as well.  

So, while Abe will always have a huge chamber of my heart permanently carved with his name, I have a lovely man looking for his own piece of real estate in the same neighborhood.

Some Superheroes of Love Have to Face Some Mighty Battles

I went to see Noel Coward's A Song at Twilight at the Pasadena Playhouse last night. Brilliant: Roxanne Hart, Sharon Lawrence and Bruce Davison. I get there a little late which forbade me from reading this "Note from the Director" in the program prior to the play. I don't always read these. I think perhaps from now on I will. 

In the play Sir Hugo (played by Davison) is confronted by Carlotta (played by Lawrence) who is threatening to out him with letters of a long ago love affair with a man. Married for 20 years, and having become quite a famous writer, and yes, even knighted, the thought of having the love of his life revealed is terrifying.

I had previously read and forgotten the details of Gielgud's arrest mentioned below. Shame on me. Shame on all of us that gay men and women have to continue to fight to love who they wish to love.

Art Manke writes:

Love Will Be Found the Sweetest Song of All

After a couple of post-rehearsal drinks one evening in October 1953, the great English actor Sir John Gielgud (1904-2000) paid a visit to one of Chelsea's infamous underground lavatories to seek out companionship for the evening. Before gay clubs, bars, and online dating sites, this was a common practice among men seeking men in this west London neighborhood. On this particular night however, the man who smiled back at Sir John was a member of Scotland Yard's so-called Pretty Police: young recruits picked for their good looks and stationed there to entrap homosexuals. The next morning, Gielgud - who was identified as "John Smith" on the charge sheet -- was let off with a minor fine and urged to see a doctor. At a time when 12 to 18 months in prison was considered a lenient sentence, he was able to walk away virtually unscathed, or so he thought. Unfortunately, Gielgud's inimitable voice was recognized by a journalist who covered the arraignment, and by that afternoon, "Sir John Gielgud Fined" was the headline in the London Evening Standard newspaper. This led to the most sensational coverage of homosexuality in print since Oscar Wilde's trial in 1895.

Although he was able to continue working in the English theatre because of the staunch support of his fellow actors and producers and his adoring public, it would be another four years before he could travel to the United States due to the "moral turpitude" clause in its entry visas. He suffered a nervous breakdown, seriously considered suicide, and endured ongoing humiliation at the hands of conservative journalists and politicians who called for him to be stripped of his knighthood. Although attitudes about homosexuality started to evolve during Sir John's lifetime, and the United Kingdom's 1967 Sexual Offences Act decriminalized homosexual acts between consenting men, he carried the shame of the arrest to his grave almost half a century later.

It is important to know that A Song at Twilight was written and first performed in 1966, one year before the British Parliament ended its draconian punishment of homosexuals. So in the play, it is no wonder why Sir Hugo Latymer responds the way he does to Carlotta's proposition. Sir Hugo's every moment of existence is colored by fear of exposure, which playwright Noel Coward knew only too well, as did Somerset Maugham, Terence Rattigan, Emlyn Williams, Michael Redgrave, and countless other gay artists who carefully and methodically avoided "outing" in their lifetimes. The real loss for Sir Hugo is that he allowed that fear to prevent him from ever experiencing real love and true intimacy.

The play's title comes from the popular Victorian-era Irish song, "Loves Old Sweet Song (Just a Song at Twilight)," and the lyrics tell us:

So till the end, when life's dim shadows fall,

Love will be found the sweetest song of all.

Superhero of Love FUN: The Light Overcomes the Darkness!

"Behind Every Cloud is the Sun!"     

 

This was, shockingly, my first Holi festival.  Having been to India several times I can't get enough of anything Indian -- particularly their joyous festivals. This one is always around  my birthday, right at the beginning of Spring, and each year I have missed it.  Who wouldn't want to celebrate the triumph of light over dark?!  And, what sheer bliss to be covered in bright lucious colors! 

 

My friend and I arrived at the tail end of this festival.  We were two of only a few non-Indians and we were received with such love.  The color packets were all gone so a lovely woman with the hugest most lovely smile grabbed me by the shoulders rubbed water on my cheeks and then smushed her cheeks into mine so that she transferred color onto my face.  That was just the beginning of a day of love!

 

People came up to us from every direction with little bits of colored powder that they had left over.  In the end we got all the colors and looked fabulously festive.  Everyone was so generous and sweet and inclusive.  And, the kids were so playful, like this little one who chased me around with her water gun in those snazzy superhero sunglasses. 

 

 

Part of the fun is pouring water on each other to make the colors move, and to make your skin more accepting of even more color.  Her secret mission was to get me as waterlogged as possible.  She was hilarious!  I know she had a cape under that outfit!

We also had two superb dancers grab us and teach us all the right moves to the blasting Indian tunes.  It's just impossible to not have fun while doing Indian dancing!

So, if you want to celebrate the triumph of the light, get yourself to a Holi Festival next year.  They happen in Indian communities all over the U.S.  The largest, drawings 10's of 1000's is in South Fork, Utah.  Can you imagine the level of joy with that many people frolicking in one place.  A friend who has been said everyone is extremly polite too - even asking if you wish to have color thrown on you! 

Bottom line: this is a feel good holiday celebration if ever there was one.  If your heart needs a lift next spring, or you wish to mark the transition from winter to spring, google "holi festival [your town]" and see what you get!   You will be welcomed with open arms and love, I promise -- no matter where on this mighty planet you find yourself.

Namaste Superheroes!!!!

Superhero in Training

It's no mistake that in contemplating the idea of being a Superhero of Love I started training for a marathon.  Last week as I did one of my last long runs before Sunday's LA Marathon I was doing the long loop around my house which allows me a steep uphill in the first third of the run and an equally steep downhill on my way home.  That final descent is nothing short of exhilerating when I am loose and feeling good.  

As I did it last week I felt like I was flying and started thinking about Muybridge's study of whether all four hooves of a horse were in the air at once.  I started contemplating the percentage of time both my feet were in the air.  As I came down the hill it felt like they were mostly in the air. Of course they weren't but feeling like a superhero is just as good as being a superhero.

The LA Marathon sends you a short video of your crossing the finish line.  As I jogged over it (and past it, by the way, for no really good reason other than I think I thought it would make up for the times I had stopped to walk toward the end) the event M.C. screamed over the loud speaker "Superheroooooooooooooooo!"  It wasn't for me but it was a mighty cool synchronicity that I didn't catch that day.

On Marathon day my Facebook feed was also filled with images of supeheroes flying through the air from friends cheering me toward the finish.   I hadn't actually thought of marathons as a superhero feat, but now that I'm in touch with my own ability to "fly" and do something I had no clue how to do. I'm declaring this as part of my Superhero in Love training. 

Love and life give us seemingly insurmountable hills and require endurance of the heart, mind and soul, so any practice can make the next challenge a little easier.  Expanded heart and lung capacity for increased breath and love is always a good thing for a superhero.

Superheroes Need Cheerleaders Too!

Don't you think cheerleading makes all superheroes try a little harder?  Of course it does.

I just realized how important it is in my life, particularly when training for my first marathon.  I feel like I should hire a fleet of them.

Click here for my Huffington Post article on this very superhero subject!

The Signature of All Things Superhero

I can't more highly recommend a book for a Superhero of Love in training:

http://huff.to/19QhMsa

I loooooooooooooooooved it!