Recently I was asked in an interview for The Native Society to discuss people I admire. There are so many people doing great things, it was hard to choose. But I did.
I’m naming names. Some living, some deceased, some well known, some not, I’m honored to share these people with you.
Jane Roberts and the Seth Books
Perhaps the most influential person in my life has been Jane Roberts. In the 60’s and 70’s, she ran salons in her Syracuse, NY, living room, where she collaborated with Seth, a multi-dimensional being. The collaborations focused on consciousness, multi-dimensional reality, human potentiality and actualization. The books published by Jane and her husband, Robert, forever changed the landscape of consciousness and what it is to be an awakened human.
The teachings are dense and packed with unfolding layers of expansive and challenging concepts and ideas, intelligently and poetically articulated. No New Age platitudes, rather a cohesive and intricately integrated explanation of who we are, expanding awareness of what is possible and probable.
I discovered the teachings in the early 90s, and the work has informed my thinking ever since. Energy, consciousness, evolution, embodiment and authenticity all elegantly explained through a compassionate and intelligent lens.
I have yet to read a spiritual or self-help book that has the luster of refined and expansive awareness that I have realized from studying the Seth books for almost 30 years. In truth, Seth opened me up to actualizing my authentic self. I know that being who I am is my most important and never-ending task.
Seth Godin
I admire authenticity. Yes, the word is overplayed in current culture. Yet it remains an important principle and practice in my teaching and personal work.
I savor the authentic, cohesive communication, clear thinking and brand integrity of yet another Seth: Seth Godin.
He’s got a persona, as do we all. His is real. He knows and is who he is. I trust his message because who he is shines through his ideas, products and connections with his tribe. I’ve watched and learned from his work and aligned messaging. His ideas resonate. I’ve watched people shift their inner GPS, to navigate their lives and work more authentically as they connect with Seth’s perspective and offerings. Good stuff!
Janet
Ever notice that when someone is authentic, he or she deeply embodies life and its experiences?
One woman who inspired me profoundly was my friend, Janet. She died some years ago, in her mid 70’s, of a heart attack, following a board meeting for the alumni association of her alma mater, a college she was proud to attend and support.
In her 20’s, she was one of three survivors of a plane crash. Flying from DC to New Haven in a foggy rainstorm, the plane crashed on landing, killing most passengers. Janet, the pilot and one other passenger survived the crash by climbing onto the wing of the burning plane and jumping to the ground. She spent several months in the hospital healing from burns and impact injuries.
While hospitalized, she entered therapy to process her experience and reclaim her life. Heal she did. She embraced her life with relish, clarity and gratitude. She tackled her shortcomings vigorously and compassionately, gaining self-awareness, inner growth and evolution.
I learned a lot about fully embodying life from Janet. Her modeling inspired me when I made sweeping changes in my life 5 years ago.
Those who Persevere
Evolving and growing can be challenging. The desire for growth helps make bearable the slog through the muddy, fetid swamp of de-construction and re-formation. I admire people who persevere, resisting the inclination to surrender, collapse or give up.
I admire the practitioners and clients with whom I’ve worked who ‘slog the slog’ (walk their talk). They trust… in fact, they know they’ll reach high ground and become who they are.
These good people come from all walks of life, having both ordinary and powerful experiences that transform their lives over and over again. Breakdowns, breakthroughs, broken and broken open.
Evolution is my stock in trade. It’s what I do, teach and practice. Conscious awareness, authentic participation and embodied presence are being states that can change your world, and perhaps the world.
Who do you admire and why?
