The last few weeks have been intense.  My kids are out of school which is a relief from the daily monitoring of progress but is chaos on my schedule.  My self-employed husband and I go from a seven-hour work day to squeezing in two daytime hours of focused productivity.  On top of that, add throwing three birthday parties this summer (the twins get half-birthday parties since their birthdays fall during Christmas week and older boy’s actual b-day is in summer) organizing our summer getaway, trying to work out when I dropped a suitcase on my foot two weeks ago (it still looks like an eggplant) AND cooking up the most exciting business offerings I’ve done in years. (more to come)

With all that said, the recent weeks have also been S-A-W-E-E-T as I have had a chance to relive my own history and a friend’s as well.

My good bud and radio partner, DJ Mitsch, just published her book, “Mystic Grits”, which is about her life growing up in the deep south and her success as a business mystic.  She has had magical experiences during her journey that span from sound business moves to listening to the wisdom of her childhood Ouija board to the sighting of angels.  By reading her story, which was shared through journal entries and her own commentary on her life, I was transported to a wonderful place where my friend’s history made clear to me why she is who she is today. I’d always loved her but knowing her story made me appreciate her even more.

Just this past weekend, I got to relive part of my history by visiting with folks who I knew from Boston University’s Stage Troupe. We had not all been together in 24 years! ( I can’t be that old!)  What a treat to see these wonderful people and learn how their lives have evolved.  We laughed so hard retelling stories of our escapades in college and looking at old pictures. Besides reminiscing, however, there was great meaning in the visit for me.

The people who gathered were so dear.  They were part of an important time in my life.  We also all shared a love and passion for theatre although we were not theatre majors.  That passion lives on as a common thread among us today .These are the people that knew me before I had any career to speak of and being with them as we reveled in each others’ successes and struggles was so natural. There was no posturing from anyone–anything we did was an accomplishment compared to our student selves so it was fun to just be in the stories.  We had no expectations of each other (I think) so the evening went on as if twenty four years ago was yesterday.  Yet, we listened to each other with great interest, drinking up every detail. It’s not everyday that a group of people show that kind of rapt attention.  Everyone’s love and respect for each other had matured with us and it was an unusual experience that I still don’t have all the words to describe.

I suppose it’s  understandable why many people choose to bury their past even if they’ve worked hard to triumph against it. There is really nothing wrong with that, but maybe it is a spiritual milestone when you can make peace with both the past and the present and integrate them as the seamless, delicate path to the wonderous life that is yours. We all have our stories and they are all worth sharing.

Both my friend DJ and I were a bit apprehensive about putting out such personally revealing books this year, but as I heard Jill Bolte Taylor explain in a video about preparing for her TED speech, “the fruit is out on the limb”.  Jill went out on a limb in her 18 minute TED talk and it has been an internet hit ever since.  DJ and I hope that by reaching out on a limb, we will reap fruit as well.  We have already heard from so many folks about how the books have given them courage or helped them heal or has moved them in some way. By revisting our history we helped the present make sense.

That’s what makes it a meaningful life.

DJ and I will be speaking together in Cary, NC, on July 23rd