We Stand in the Middle 21 & 22
"Nobody who ever accomplished anything big or new or worth raising a celebratory fist in the air for did it from their comfort zone.” - Jen Sincero
The post about Chapters 21 and 22 of We Stand in the Middle begins with a preface - an introduction that’s been steeping in my marrow, wedged in the crevices between conscious thought and dreams, buried beneath the dirt and grime and bone fragments of others’ expectations, and immutable walls of white noise that made it almost impossible for me to hear my own voice calling.
For a long time my life was like that table with the wonky leg at your favorite coffee shop. No matter how hard I tried - no matter how many matchbooks or pieces of folded paper I shoved beneath the too short leg - the table was never stable, never balanced. It was always on the verge of sending all the cups of designer coffee and delicious pastries crashing to the floor.
Why? Because I believed what I was taught - that my survival depended on looking, speaking, and behaving in ways that allowed me to be compared to and compete with others. The better I got at the compare-and-compete game, the deafer I became and the further I drifted from my creative center.
I call that creative center my taproot - the part of myself that is firmly tied to both my spirit and the planet. It’s the part of me that knows why I am here, what I came to do, and how I want to do it. After decades of believing my value lay in pleasing others, I’ve turned my attention back to the rich, dark soil of my Self - back to my taproot. The work I am doing as a result is squarely focused on listening to and exploring the parts of myself I’ve neglected and telling the stories that result.
Which brings me to the final step in this process - trusting that like-minded, like-hearted people like yourselves will find and support my work, so I can find and support others, so that we can all get on with the business of healing ourselves and the planet.
Therefore, I’m putting the chapters of, We Stand in the Middle as well as a new series of essays I’m starting entitled From the Porch (based on conversations I’ve been having with unexpected and uninvited visitors to my back porch) behind a paywall.
If you feel you’re one of the rag tag and eclectic members of my tribe and can swing the $8.00 bucks a month, join me! If not, that’s okay too. This process has taught me that there are as many ways home as there are lives on the planet.
Much love and hugs,
Jena
Click on the image above to begin reading Chapter 21 of We Stand in the Middle.
Click on the image above to begin reading Chapter 22 of We Stand in the Middle.
Copyright 2024 by Jena Ball. All Rights Reserved.