Intelligence: the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills.
TLD Intel: a monthly roundup of events, articles, books, videos and podcasts to help you live The Life Delicious!
Hello!
I hope you'll look into this month's resources, below!
They provide some amazing insight on developing fierce intimacy, fierce self-compassion, and awakening your power.
In particular, Kristen Neff's research on tender vs. fierce self-compassion – and how we can use it to both care for ourselves and prevent burnout when helping others – is really blowing my mind.
But first: how are you?
In my province of British Columbia, we've entered Step 3 of the Restart Plan which means we can return to normal for indoor and outdoor personal gatherings, have a capacity of 50% at organized gatherings, and resume Canada-wide recreation travel.
On a personal note, it means that I can see my parents in person and HUG THEM for the first time since Christmas 2019.
It also means that my husband is returning to work at the office, which is a hard pill to swallow.
The past 16 months with him working from home have been so amazing for our little family.
Connection rituals are very important to me.
He's been there for every meal and every bedtime with our daughter, and we've been able to pop downstairs to give him a quick hug and kiss at any time.
As we transition to this new phase, we will create new rituals.
I imagine that the time apart will make our time together even more special.
Wherever you are in the world, the Covid-19 Pandemic has likely had a large impact on your life.
As restrictions lift for many of us, it's an opportunity to pause and reflect on what positives we want to take away from this experience.
It's an opportunity to create new rituals to help you and your family thrive.
If you want time, space, support and nourishment as you reflect on how you'd like your life to look moving forward, I invite you to join me for my next Wellness Retreat from Friday, January 28 to Monday, January 31, 2022!
Our gorgeous venue, the Oak Bay Beach Hotel in Victoria, BC, is the perfect place to nestle in and be nourished as we do the deep work of envisioning this next phase of our lives.
August 1 is the last day for Super Early Bird rates.
Give yourself the gift of reflecting and resetting today, and save $50 per person.
Click here if you're ready to join us!
Not sure if the Wellness Retreat is right for you? Book a discovery call with me to learn more.
Now to this month's roundup. I am so excited about these resources and hope you'll dig in if they resonate.
Happy reading/listening/watching!
1. VIDEO: Fierce Self-Compassion: A Conversation Between Tara Brach and Kristin Neff
I'm forever curious about tools to help us suffer less, and this conversation between psychotherapist, meditation teacher and author Tara Brach and psychology professor, pioneering self-compassion researcher and author Kristin Neff on her latest book Fierce Self-compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness To Speak Up, Claim Their Power, And Thrive (which, of course, I ordered immediately!) shares so many! [If you'd prefer podcast format, find that here.]
Three things that really stuck out were, first, her comparison of tender vs. fierce compassion as like ying and yang – complementary forces that ideally exist in balance inside each of us, but in general people socialized as women are taught to have tender compassion and people socialized as men are taught to have fierce compassion. Second, men are generally better at self-compassion and women are generally better at others-compassion, but wellsprings of energy to care for others can only be maintained when we're fierce about self-compassion. And third, Tara's insight that Kristin's book shines a light on where we can “wake up our self-compassion and our shared compassion in a way that ripples out through the whole society [which] we know [is] utterly interdependent, intersectional with every other form of oppression, [and] we need to do it on every level.”
2. PODCAST: Tami Simon with Terry Real on Fierce Intimacy
As you may know, I'm obsessed with relationships and what makes them great. This conversation offered so many beautiful tools to protect, maintain and elevate your relationship – for the betterment of not just your family unit, but the world. Here's an excerpt:
Tami: “I believe that the skills you’re teaching and the skills of being in a long-term, committed relationship that is really alive and joyful and happy, deep partnership, are the skills that will help us evolve as a human species.”
Terry: Patriarchy – which means “power over instead of power with” – is the “essential mistake of humanity. I think that thinking relationally is synonymous with thinking ecologically, and it’s wise. This is a spiritual practice. This is an evolutionary practice. This is about bringing that evolutionary spiritual practice into our daily living. Bring that evolution home. One of the things I say is, we may not be able to bring peace to the Middle East or to Syria, but we can bring peace to our living rooms and our bedroom. So start with your life. And our life is relationships. So learn how to do that and learn how to do it well.”
3. BOOK: Call of the Wild by Kimberly Ann Johnson
If you've been following me for a while, you know that I love Kimberly Ann Johnson! Her previous book, The Fourth Trimester: A Postpartum Guide to Healing Your Body, Balancing Your Emotions, and Restoring Your Vitality, was probably the most important book I read as a new mother (and definitely wish I would've read before I became pregnant). Her new book, Call of the Wild: How We Heal Trauma, Awaken Our Own Power, and Use It For Good, is equally exciting and important.
In the same vein as the above two resources, Kimberly says, “Your personal healing can fuel the collective healing.”
"Awakening your own power allows for the possibility that you can develop the capacity and stamina to use that power and privilege for the collective good, not just your own."
And part of awakening your own power, she says, comes from opening to pleasure and learning how to feel good. "Pleasure is a powerful antidote to stress," she says. "We need to stretch our upper limit of pleasure. We need to permit ourselves to do what seems indulgent."
What do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the above resources!
Wishing you TONS of delicious juicy pleasure!
Best,
Catherine
P.S. Don't forget the Super Early Bird rate for my January 2022 Wellness Retreat at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel in Victoria, BC ends on Sunday, August 1!
P.P.S. If you want to learn more, book a discovery call with me today!