A Dream, Celebrated Together

Courtesy of the Wall Street Journal

Lance Leener, 52 | Then: VP at Gloria Vanderbilt Now: Eighth-grade English and social studies teacher, Tompkins Square Middle School, New York City | When Leener was feeling discontented with the corporate world and contemplating a change, his wife reminded him how much he liked working with children. Her support, emotional and financial, helped him power through a career shift. 'Being a teacher is the hardest job on the planet. I work my ass off, I can't even tell you. I have an open-door policy with email with my students, and I interface a lot with parents, so it feels like a 24/7 job. I love it and couldn't think of doing anything differently, but it is so hard.'

So let my light shine ...

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Marianne Williamson

It is frightening to be accused of inadequacy by people who refuse to offer empathy and do not hold back from expressing animosity. But liberation comes from within, the divinity inside us that helps us discern who we really are and what we deeply desire. So ...

Access

What if you cannot have emotional accessibility to the one closest to you?
What if in the most emotional point on a given day, you are denounced and rejected?
Who do you go home to?

A quote from a friend

"And I learned how much Facebook and the ability to peer into another person’s projected life in such great details could decrease one’s ability to enjoy life to the fullest. Truly was blessed with days where I could not figure out who has done what somewhere. Truly finding the courage to let it go. Slowly."

Thanks, Felicia! Nothing less than inspiring and thought-provoking.

Dear Man

Dear Man,

I fear if this good thing is bound to escape me.

I am letting myself evolve everyday, thinking that I am getting better and things are looking up. That I am not giving up.

Inadequacy is a horrible emotion. We both know.
I feel inadequate when you worship your past and seek novelty.
You feel inadequate when you see your perceived failures.
I can only speak for myself, nonetheless.

I have tried to respond with compassion, calm you down, and acknowledge your thoughtfulness. Yet, the past of feeling inadequate and abandoned keeps haunting you, haunting us.

I am not sure when we can really be original or novel.
Was there inception after all? Or was I just something that came along, after the best thing happened?
I am not sure if I am the choice, not a settlement.

You are not whom I settle for.
You are my choice.
I can only speak for myself, nonetheless.

Honesty. That is what I ask of you.

A Second Chance

Soften your ego and self-love
Strengthen your character and integrity
Give patience and compassion
Think the best of those you love
Share love and forgiveness

A second chance does not come again
No second thoughts to changing and giving

Gratitude

I am grateful for faith, although I am surrounded by the inconvenient truths about people's nature, desires, and longing.
People leave their wives for freshness; a 41-year-old left his wife for an 18-year-old.
People dwell in discontentment, sitting still with images of what they could have flashing before them.
People weep for have-not's when they, themselves, sulk about what they don't yet have.

I am grateful for the traces of love given to me.
The smile that the sun shines, feels more and more fresh every morning.
The softness of my companion's.
The wisdom grasped from literature and discourse.
The trials, defeats and victories.
The opportunity of life, to live and to love.

I have faith that this is light and temporary.

Perseverance

Heart beats fast
Colors and promises
How to be brave
How can I love when I'm afraid to fall
But watching you stand alone
All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow

One step closer

Darlin' don't be afraid
I have loved you for a thousand years

I'll love you for a thousand more
If you want me to

~ Christina Perri

Highlights

Which would be forgotten, otherwise ...