creativity

Wonder: The one reason I’m grateful for Donald Trump

Christa Avampato

Can we get real for a minute? Seriously, pull up a chair, grab your coffee, and let’s talk. How many times have you told yourself you can’t do something because of X reason? I want you to cut it out, and here’s why. The Donald, arguably the most unqualified person to ever run for any office, anywhere, whose ego is only matched by his bank account and his tangled mess of conflicts of interest, who is deteriorating foreign relations with his late-night Twitter obsession, who has had a perpetually bad hair day since the 70s, won the electoral college to be President of the United States of America.

And you, an intelligent, conscious, curious, compassionate, hard-working person who wants to make a difference can’t do something? Really? I promise you that you can do this, whatever this is.

I’m grateful to Donald Trump for exactly one reason: he showed us that we can do anything we set our minds to. So the next time the imposter syndrome sneaks into your psyche, please allow me to pop into your mind a split second later, knock the imposter elf to the ground, and tell you to get out there and do the work you’re meant to do. Your grace, talents, and passion are needed now more than ever. Please keep shining.

creativity

Wonder: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Christa Avampato

American Public Media gave me the chance to wax poetic about my favorite holiday song, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, the importance of gratitude, and my love for James Taylor. Here’s a 1-minute soundbite of our conversation.

creativity

Wonder: How Curious George saved his creators from the Nazis

Christa Avampato

Art is endlessly generous: if we rescue it, then it will rescue us. In dark and troubling times, it’s easy and understandable to be consumed by sadness and despair. What’s more difficult, and ultimately more valuable, is to be a light to ourselves and to others. The husband and wife who wrote the beloved books about Curious George smuggled him out of Nazi-occupied France on two homemade bicycles made in the 11th hour of their escape. George’s narrow escape from a variety of curious and mischievous adventures, often by bicycle, is in no small part a colorful corollary to the flight of his authors. Karen Blixen once said that all sorrows can be borne if you put them into a story. It’s true of George and it’s true of us. We can create our way to a better tomorrow.

creativity

Wonder: How the war in Syria began

Christa Avampato

I’ve been trying to understand what’s happening in Syria and why it began. If you’re curious about this, too, here is the story in a very brief nutshell; it’s a sad, twisted, and cautionary tale of graffiti by children, an ego-maniacal President, and the danger of silently normalizing hideous behavior.

5 years ago Syrian civilians decided to peacefully protest after 15 schoolchildren were arrested – and reportedly tortured – for writing anti-government graffiti on a wall. Government forces opened fired on the protesters killing 4 people. Then they open fired on the mourners at the funerals of those 4 people the following day killing 1 more person.

The people then rose up to meet violence with violence. About 3 years later an organization calling itself IS for Islamic State got involved. Taking advantage of the chaos and desperation, IS escalated the matter even further by retaliating against anyone who didn’t hold IS’s extreme religious views. Then Russia uses its muscle to support the Syrian government, the US and UK make some attempts to support the rebels, some countries slowly crack open the door to welcome Syrian refugees, and the vast majority of the rest of the world sits on its hands, waits, and watches as hundreds of thousands of innocent people are murdered without cause or reason.

Here we are 5 years later and some estimates state that roughly 500,000 people have been killed. All because Syria’s government felt threatened by the graffiti of children and the calls of its people for greater freedom of expression and democracy. It defies reason and any semblance of sanity. This is the damage that one man can cause. This is what the ego, when left unchecked, can do to an entire nation of people. Let that sink in.

creativity

Wonder: How to use time to your advantage

Christa Avampato

A few weeks ago I read the book The Power of When. It’s a quick read that helps each reader understand their chronotype—when they have maximum brain power and do their best work. I’ve read books like this before but this is the first one that’s helped me really understand when and why I do my best work. It’s not a perfect match for me, but in terms of my sleep and work hours, it’s a pretty good fit.

Like about half of people, I’m a bear:

  • I like to get 7-8 hours of sleep and wake easily once I’ve rested enough (I can’t tell you what a relief it is to have this after years of insomnia)
  • I do my best work between 10am and noon
  • a walk before lunch and a quick 20-minute nap or some meditation around 2pm help to keep up my energy
  • by 3pm I’m ready to leave my desk and be with people
  • I love food
  • I love my friends
  • Have a can-do attitude and enjoy having time to relax

In the new year, I’m going to try to make this schedule more of a reality so that 2017 becomes my best year yet. If you want to take a 45-second quiz time find out which of the 4 personality types you are, check out: http://thepowerofwhenquiz.com/

creativity

Wonder: A much-needed pep talk and 5 things to be grateful for every day

Christa Avampato

“You aren’t doing great, but you aren’t drowning and that is something.” ~The Secret Life of Pets (Duke to Max)

My sweet friend, Cara, has been doing an exercise on Facebook that I really love. Every day she posts 5 things she’s grateful for. These aren’t the same, stale, stereotypical responses to questions like this. She gets down into the details. These are 5 practical things that made her life better that day. They are often small things, things that we overlook all too often, and I always look forward to reading her posts. With Christmas around the bend and the new year not far behind, I’m inspired to take up this idea, too. So on my social media platforms, you’ll see a nod to 5 things that I appreciate that day. Because look, things may not be better, but recognizing the good makes me feel better, and that, as Duke would say, is something.

creativity

Wonder: In each pause, I hear the call

Christa Avampato

“In each pause, I hear the call.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

This weekend, I took another pause. It was a long week last week, filled with its fair share of frustration in a number of ways, so I tried my best to sit back this weekend, rest, and recuperate. I caught up with a lot of friends to talk about some ideas I have, watched movies, and made a lot of delicious food. I also spent a significant amount of time sleeping and snuggling with Phin. And something great happened by Sunday night: I saw a pretty complete and happy picture of a way forward. It seemed like every magazine I leafed through, every commercial I saw, and every idea I heard had some sort of significance to what I’m doing and where I’m going. Like little guideposts, they were showing me the way. Too often, I’ve thought of pausing as unproductive. It’s not; it’s vital. I’m excited it’s becoming a regular habit of mine. Pause, and be glad.

 

creativity

Wonder: What the movie The Secret Life of Pets taught me about being human

Christa Avampato

If you want to know what my life with Phineas was like in New York City, watch the movie The Secret Life of Pets. Max, the main character, has Phineas’s personality to a tee (though the dachshund Buddy looks exactly like him!) Max even has separation anxiety when his mom, Katie, leaves for work every day just like Phin does. The movie takes place in our neighborhood on the Upper West Side. It shows some of our favorite areas of Central Park and the tiny apartments in beautiful buildings that we happily called home for years. There are a few scenes where Katie and Max are staring out at the skyline from their apartment, complete with the water towers I always loved so much. That was something Phineas and I often did, too. When Max describes his relationship with Katie, all I could do was hug Phineas and say, “That’s just like us, buddy!”

Looking at all of these nostalgic scenes made me realize that while we don’t remember every single moment of our lives, what we do remember is how all of our moments made us feel. I’m sad to say that I don’t remember every single moment with Phineas, in New York City or elsewhere. What I do know is that he has made all of my good moments great moments and he’s made all of the tough times more manageable. His love, devotion, and loyalty have been some of the greatest gifts of my life. I treasure all those walks, snuggles, naps, and playtimes, and I always will. The secret life of pets is that they are our best co-pilots.

creativity

Wonder: Harry Reid’s advice on how to spend our time

Christa Avampato

“Do the choices we make about how we spend our time keep us in touch with what we believe in, and what is real in our own lives?” ~Harry Reid, retiring Senator from Nevada

Today I read Senator Reid’s farewell published in the New York Times.Though most of his letter addresses the 100 Senators who will be in session come January 2017, this statement about how we spend our time applies to all of us. It’s something I am deeply considering as we round the corner on the new year. It’s something that will cause me to make some big changes in the coming year because ultimately how we spend our days is how we spend our lives. Moments add up to hours to days to months to years. I don’t want to waste any of mine in any way—not for comfort, ease, or the sake of a paycheck. It has never been easier in the history of the world for us to do incredible things that help build a world that we’re proud to call home. And if I’m not spending my days aspiring to that, then I am wasting my time. So onward and upward with a full and purposeful heart.

(And one comment on Harry Reid’s letter: he will be leaving the Senate for the final time when this new administration flips and that departure seems tinged with a mixture of relief and grief that he’s going. He never envisioned Donald Trump as President, particularly since Trump lost the popular vote by almost 3 million votes. (A new record!) I’m grateful for his service and admire his example of how to make a difficult system simpler, more efficient, and more effective. It’s not an easy thing to do, and he should be celebrated for his role in moving closer to a Washington that works.)

 

creativity

Wonder: Let your love be a resource for the world

Christa Avampato

“In one soul, your soul, there are resources for the world.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Thanks to the disaster that is the DC metro, I walked 18 blocks in the pouring rain during rush hour yesterday. I was angry and feeling very sorry for myself when I walked by a man who was hungry and asked me for some change to get a slice of pizza. I gave myself a mental “snap out of it” and then I bought him some pizza. Wherever we are, there is good work to do. We don’t always see it. Sometimes we’re so caught up in our own inner dialogue that we miss the opportunity in front of us. I certainly was. The man thanked me for the pizza, and I thanked him for letting me help.