When was the last time you…
Just the other day, a colleague of mine asked, “How were you able to get that position?” My answer was, “I just asked. “
When was the last time that you saw an opportunity, and while it was new, different or out of the ordinary, you asked for what you wanted, needed, or thought was helpful?
What did/does that feel like?
There’s excitement, anticipation, and perhaps a little trepidation for me.
My most recent ask was about doing a Clinical Pastoral Education internship at a small local organization that serves survivors of human
trafficking, Crossing Point Arts.
(This isn’t quite as out of the blue as it may sound… In college, I volunteered at a rape crisis center and continued volunteering with programs in New York City when I moved here for graduate school. I directed two programs in New Jersey and also served as an expert witness. My desire to volunteer with Crossing Point Arts feels natural, a fond reminder of the many years I spent in the anti-sexual violence movement.)
Honestly, a chaplain in a social service agency is an anomaly. This isn’t a hospital setting where roles and rules are quite clearly defined, and there’s a true container for your experiences. I am fortunate to find a place that sees the importance of offering my services, as chaplains provide a compassionate presence to vulnerable people needing spiritual care/support in understanding and making meaning from their experiences. (Spiritual care comprises showing up with an open mind/without preconceptions, bearing witness/listening deeply, and acting compassionately.)
I love creating new spaces within which to bring my expertise and enthusiasm. Those aspects of who I am brought me to two other consulting positions this year.
What about you?
- Which areas of interest, expertise or insight have inspired you to ask about possibilities?
- In reflecting over the past year or so, where have you stepped into an opportunity or forged a different path?
Of course, this isn’t always about starting something brand new it can be broadening and/or deepening an existing practice.
And, to be honest, I am a data, facts, and research gal. When I make an ask, I have acknowledged why enthusiasm and checked in with reality—is the the right next step…
I’d love to hear your stories. I hope you will share with me… we could grab a cuppa joe and chat!
While my list isn’t typical when I reflect on the phrase “summer reading” (which means “beach reads” or light fare to me),
10% Happier, Dan Harris
I am in the midst of the workbook Living Fully and Dying Prepared by Francesca Lynn Arnoldy and cannot recommend it highly enough for everyone. She does in writing and through exercises what I endeavor to do in all my sessions on visual obituary creation and end-of-life planning—engaging in creative explorations of our lives and our wishes for care in our final days and weeks. This work brings a new appreciation of our present lives.
that have piqued my interest. Next up for me is How to Tell a Story 
My topic, “Creating a Visual Obituary,” is one of my favorites, though I have to say that I had never before facilitated this offering with graduate students. And, I had never worked with a group that had studied dying, death, caregiving, grieving, and memorialization in such depth. I was keen to discover how they would respond to the subject matter (obituaries), the 50 prompts I had created, and the activity (drawing their obituary based on the questions/prompts that resonated for them), which I had used with older audiences.