First of all, I just want to say a huge thank you to all of you came out Friday night. We had an amazing turnout for our 8th annual Sip & Shop and we so appreciate that so many of you supported these local artists with your holiday purchases. If you didn’t get a chance to attend or are just in need of some more holiday gifts, Dave’s items are still available Around the Corner and we will be featuring a couple other artists at BL the next two Saturdays before Christmas!! So still time to shop!!
I also want to give a shout out to all of you who showed up and rocked it out at our Holiday Yoga Rocks. It was a sold out event…such a testament to the fact that our peeps are ready and excited to be part of this wonderful BL community once again!! In addition to flowing to the sounds of the holidays, we did some dancing, there was some trumpet playing, lots of sweat and even a bit of singing!! Amazing energy for sure and such a fun way to get ourselves geared up for the holidays!!
So for those of you who weren’t at the Yoga Rocks, I just wanted to take a moment to share my Yoga Rocks message with the rest of you…oh and it all starts with Buddy The Elf…
A couple of weekends ago, Dave and I took our kids and grandkids to see Elf the musical at the Fox theater. It was a wonderful experience and a super cute spin on the movie ELF. Watching it though, conjured up this random memory from a few years ago when Chris and I literally got in an argument over which one of us was more like ELF. We were both convinced that we were right. So what does a grown woman do when trying to prove that she is more like Elf than her best friend…??? She/as in me…GOOGLES characteristics of Buddy the Elf. (I was actually shocked to discover that there were several articles analyzing Buddy’s character. Hilarious.)
One of articles I found was on Leadership Lessons from Buddy the Elf (oh and because Chris wasn’t in town to attend this event, I had Brie put her face on a stick which I held up during my message so I could tell her that her side of this argument was indeed represented).
1) A Passion for his cause. Buddy’s passion for Christmas was undeniable and parallels my passion for BL and spreading the word about sound nutrition.
2) Not afraid to challenge those who don’t think the way he does. Buddy told fake Santa, “you smell like beef and cheese.” I will not hesitate to tell anyone who is on the latest fad diet that it's NOT the way to lose weight
3) Helps others recognize their strengths. A leader needs the guts to stand alone and be vulnerable in order for others to feel like they can follow. If you know Chris, there is not a vulnerable bone in her body. Me, on the other hand, tends to share my vulnerabilities and, in Chris’ words, sometimes has a tendency to “over share” them. Hmmm….ok maybe.
4) He’s kind. Ok on this one I have to say we both can be kind in different ways at different times. Chris’ delivery just tends to be a bit more direct.
5) He knows how to have fun. Alright hands down everyone around us would say I win on this one although (holding up the Chris head) she would say she just has fun doing different things.
But here’s the crux of Chris’ argument: She would say that Buddy is portrayed as someone who is happy despite his circumstances…which I would admit is usually more like her. BUT as I witnessed at the musical the other day, Buddy starts out at the beginning of the musical singing that his hands are happy and his fingers are happy and his toes are happy but then when he finds out he’s actually not just an overgrown elf, but a human, his whole world comes crashing down on him. He shares through song that his hands, fingers and toes are all sad. His reaction to his reality makes him miserable.
So, once again, I’m going to claim to being more like Buddy, even though in this case it’s not a desirable trait. Buddy struggled with the gap between his expectations of being an elf and his reality of being a human. It initially caused him much pain. Sometimes I too have trouble bridging that gap, but those who know Chris well will agree that you rarely see Chris ruffled by whatever she is dealt. She seems to naturally just adjust her expectations to match her reality.
Of course, we all have different strengths and weaknesses and we can learn from each other…even from Buddy. He initially reacted to the reality of being human by making himself miserable but then after a little advice from Santa he ends up adjusting his expectations by setting out to find his human family and embracing that reality. Just think if we could avoid that period of self imposed suffering as a result of resisting what already is, how much less stressful our lives could be right from the get go.
So what have we learned from our friend Buddy?…to see the wonder in all and to embrace our reality!!
Oh and P.S. Chris…I still win!!
