Tag: purpose

creativity

Day 2: Our Own Odyssey

Christa Avampato
Me at home

“Going home doesn’t feel like triumph. It feels like relief.” ~Dr. John Bucher, Joseph Campbell Foundation executive director

A few weeks ago, I had the great fortune to listen to my friend and mentor, John Bucher, talk about The Odyssey at Los Angeles’s Getty Villa. The title of his talk was “No Place Like Home: Why The Odyssey Is the Story We Keep Retelling”. (His talk is streaming on YouTube and you can watch here.)

I’ve been thinking about the idea of home a lot recently. Homer’s ancient Greek epic The Odyssey follows Odysseus, king of Ithaca, as he spends 10 years trying to get home after the Trojan War. While he faces monsters, storms, and gods, his wife, Penelope, and son Telemachus fight off aggressive suitors taking over his palace. As John explains, it’s about the war after the war and finding an answer to the question, “How do we go home when home no longer exists?”

It struck me so clearly that Odysseus’s journey is in many ways like a quest all of us have had. For me, his journey parallels my healing from cancer. My 10-year medication journey like his 10-year trek. The dog who is waiting for him so faithfully and then passes once he’s sure of his father’s return – much like how Phinny passed once he knew I would be okay in every way. Odysseus’s home was nothing like the one he left. Neither is my body.

John went on to say, “We might prefer to skip the journey. What we learn is that the journey is worth it.” And I feel that in my every cell of my body. I hate that I got cancer. It’s not a journey I ever wanted to take, not a community of survivors I ever wanted to join. But I had no choice. The journey back to wellness was forced on me. I had to fight, or die. And I wanted to live, so I fought. It was worth it because I learned what I was made of at my core. I learned how people feel about me while I’m still among the living. Best of all, I got to help so many others by lighting the way along their own difficult journeys.

Home isn’t a place, at least not for me. Home is love. Home is belonging. Home is friendship. Home is being a part of something bigger than myself. Home is purpose. Home is something I carry with me, always, in all ways, everywhere I go.

creativity

A Year of Yes: The only work you have to do

Christa Avampato

The only work you have to do is find and do the work you’re meant to do. That’s enough; that’s always been enough. Just do that.

creativity

In the pause: Find your door

Christa Avampato

“If it doesn’t open, it’s not your door.” ~Anonymous

Robert Spekman, my marketing professor at Darden, used to tell us that the only way you can feel better while beating your head against a wall is to stop.

Yes, you should absolutely work hard for what you want but if the joy goes out of what you’re doing, if you feel like it’s the battle of your life instead of the path of your life, then stop. At least for a moment. Sit back, close your eyes, and breathe. Is it worth it to keep going? Are you doing this out of obligation and habit, or passion and purpose? Sometimes the only way to find our door is to walk away from the one in front of us. We only have so much time. Let’s make every day, every action, count.

creativity

In the pause: The number one beauty secret

Christa Avampato

“The secret to beauty is simple: ‘Be who you are.'” ~Bobbi Brown

This week I’ve been laser-focused on projects that light me up. I’m following my passions and curiosity in many directions. People keep saying to me, “Christa, you sound great. You look great. What’s going on with you?” Friends, it’s about happiness and empowerment. It’s about confidently standing in our own light and allowing ourselves to really be seen and heard. Now is always the time to be exactly, completely, authentically, and unapologetically who we are.