I booked myself a week of vacation for space, consolidation, dreaming, scheming & creation. It's been an amazing few weeks - since I made and shared my Die Awesome B-School Video avalanches of hope and innovation have showed up, many times through the ideas and generous support of people like you who are reading this!
A strategy has been shaping in my mind about how to get those ideas done - manifestation a la hustlin' as my sister says. By hustlin' I mean working hard, fueled by love, lit by prayers for help, sprinkled with generous bum wiggling and with a warrior squeep of let's do it! Let's experiment! :)
None of this would have been thinkable for me less than a year ago.
Last spring I embarked on what I thought would be the certain incremental apex of my j-o-b life. I found myself in a nursing leadership position, split between clinical and management in an amazing setting working with elders, their family and kind staff. It was a total blow to the ego and "life plan" (ha!) when I realised with distraught that I could not continue the position - my heart was not in it.
It was a rough and tender time after leaving the position. I thank the stars that when one dream dies out of its ashes new dreams can rise.
Here are some of the pieces which touched my heart, challenged my and gave me hope to keep conspiring :)
Do not do shit just to please your parents.
It's not easy to follow your heart and be yourself, especially when your parents have a hard time with it. Trust me, I know. I'm a religion-award-winning Catholic school Head Prefect nerd who moved out and became burlesque banana. I publicly explored my sexuality in queer, kinky and poly circles and ended up finding amazing partners who are COMPLETELY not prize-winning-traditional-Vietnamese husband material. It was not easy but it has been profoundly beautiful. I am lucky that I have amazing resilient, forgiving parents. For those in doubt like I was, trust that your parents are amazing, resilient and forgiving as well. Love them and trust their love for you - hold for the possibility that this bond can be transformative in its love, no matter how hard it is. Me, Mommy Pham and Daddy, we weathered storms of pain, disappointment and shattered expectations to arrive back to loving each other exactly for who we are. It's a two way love. It keeps growing too.
With super Phamily love,