Adventures Away
Whether you are living your life day-to-day at home, or off on vacation, life certainly can hold an element of adventure because we don’t always know what will happen next.
Last week I shared with you that I was headed out on vacation. As I write this letter this morning, I am back home with 3,000 plus miles put onto my little Fiat 500. Indeed, with an adventure under my belt I officially got a year older as well.
On a scale from one to 10, the trip was definitely a 9.5! The wedding in Bend, Oregon of my nephew Ryan and my new niece Katie was lots of fun. The miles in between were incredibly eye opening, giving me lots of miles to just relax and reflect on the journey this far into my life. The scenery from Colorado to Oregon and back was just what the doctor ordered.
The family members I had the joy of reuniting with as well as other new acquaintances that I met along my way were the icing on the cake. Relationships that matter (whether personal or business) are all a part of the journey that I think makes it all so worthwhile.
What I hadn’t expected, was to turn on the car radio at one point of my journey and immediately to hear the words that Robin Williams had died - and even more unbelievable - by his own hand. Most definitely one of those moments in time I won’t ever forget.
This morning’s letter in fact has been difficult for me to write. For the first time in many years of writing the Victory Letter, I found myself getting through a fair case of writers block.
I am thinking it’s primarily because I want to be very concise and clear around my feelings of grief - especially knowing that many of you reading this letter are feeling the loss as well. Someone who many of us considered a dear friend and ally on the planet - is gone. Gone because his mind was in so much pain that he found no other solution.
And as I drove the miles through Utah I thought about how the pain in our minds is just as real as any other part of our bodies.
That night at my hotel in Park City I watched the first episode of Mork and Mindy on YouTube. As I watched it, he reminded me why I loved this man so much. The TV show Mork and Mindy was on the air at the same time I had decided to move to Boulder. Of all the places on the planet, Hollywood decided that Mork should land in Boulder...and I had made that decision as well - a decision that has served me well in my life.
In the months before I was actually able to move to Boulder I would watch the show to excitedly see glimpses of Boulder, my new home to be - and Mork was an added treat. I became endeared to him and think of him (and Mindy’s ponytails too) every time I drive down Pine Street in Boulder and see the “Mork and Mindy House.” What a trip!
Funny thing my sister Robi and I even named our puppies after the show...her's was Mork and mine was Mindy.
What really hit me in the rest of my travels home was thinking through why Robin Williams felt like such a “friend” when I had never even met him. The why I came up with was because he continuously, for so many years, did what good friends do best...he made me laugh. Here are a few of the highlights of an amazing body of work that Robin gave to us all.
And whether it was his times with Johnny Carson or pulling off Mrs. Doubtfire so beautifully - or his flamboyant antics in Birdcage, he made us feel joy. Isn’t that what our job here is really supposed to be? We have no choice at this point but to honor his decision that it was time for him to go...
If we can each make an adventure out of our lives any thing is possible. If what you do gives joy to others in one form or another than you have lived well. You have entered others into your adventure.
Open your mind to the possibilities and honor your mind and the thoughts you think. Good, bad or indifferent they are yours to have and to hold. Of course, find the support of people that can help the mind pain when it comes...none of us are immune to it.
After this well needed summer break I am back full force this week with several events you can enjoy from your home or office. See the info in the box below.
Would love to know one of your favorite Robin Williams moments. Please share below.
In his role as Mork, when he would see an egg (the same apparatus that got him to earth) he would throw it in the air and say “Fly and be Free”. Wishing that freedom to Robin this morning and to each of you as well.
One of his quotes from a movie clip in the video link above he says, "It only occurs [real loss] when you love something more than you love yourself."
Here is to your next adventure!
To Your Successes and Victories,
- Cheri
Cheri Ruskus
Author, Business Growth Coach,
and Founder of the Victory Circles
www.VictoryCircles.com
