Recently, I’ve had several moments of witnessing first-hand the links between settling the body (that is, settling the nervous system) and showing up more mindfully, more open, and more like the “best self” that’s needed when striving for social and racial justice. In contrast, moments when my nervous system is “keyed up” (from exhaustion, from unresolved tension, from disappointment, and more), I find myself having knee-jerk reactions and being short with ... Read more ...
learning
Learning from and Healing Scars, Both Personal and Collective
Over the past year, my body has experienced a few physical injuries, including a concussion from falling last January and a cut from stepping on a broken bowl back in August. The fall left both knees badly scraped and bruised so that scars are still visible on the surface. The puncture in my foot has involved months of getting ceramic out—piece by piece—and an MRI now confirms that “only scar tissue remains.” That scar tissue isn’t visible like the scars on my knees, ... Read more ...
Why I Don’t Believe the #CovingtonCatholic Student’s Statement
I woke up today (the day after MLK Day in the U.S.) to a Facebook friend who presents as a white woman asking if I’d seen the #CovingtonCatholic student’s statement because she’s not sure what to believe. Later in the day, a white family member also sent me the statement, presumably to vindicate the white students. These messages come in response to me speaking out over the past few days about the incident, asking for white folks to break patterns of niceness and to ... Read more ...
Announcing the Decision to Leave Higher Ed: 3 Responses that Surprised Me
Today the fourth part of my series “Outside Higher Ed” appeared in Inside Higher Ed. This piece shares three common responses to my news of leaving academia: “Good for you. I wish I could leave.” “You’re so brave.” “That’s a really big decision. Will you be ok?” I also share my emotional reactions and processing around these responses, which truly surprised me. More than anything else, I learned through announcing my decision that I’m not alone in struggling with ... Read more ...
Parenting Myself 101
Over the past few months, I’ve been learning more about how to care for myself—a sort of self-care that I’m calling “parenting myself 101.” After a career change, cross-county move, and intense internal work “inside the chrysalis,” I’ve recognized the need to put good self-parenting into place. The language of “parenting” has been helpful for me to break from “self-care” focused on relaxation as an escape from everyday life. Rather than experiencing self-care as ... Read more ...
Planning a Career Change in 3 Stages
Today my third installment of “Outside Higher Ed” appeared in Inside Higher Ed: This piece shares my process of planning a career change in three stages: beginning to plan while feeling uncertain getting serious about planning putting plans into action I share stories of re-orientating myself through counseling, allowing myself time to grieve, and experiencing a concussion as the physical manifestation of the mental exhaustion that motivated my decision to ... Read more ...
My Heart Hurts on Election Day
Election day morning: I join a line that snakes around my new polling place. Like others, I pull my raincoat tighter against the cold and damp morning air, as kids squirm, jump, and cry around us. After 40+ minutes and only few feet of movement, I step out of line, knowing that if I stay, I’ll miss a hard-to-reschedule doctor’s appointment. I feel frustrated, disappointed, and angry. Election day evening: I re-join the line and, again, wait outdoors in the rain. ... Read more ...
Hurting and Hollering in the Wake of This Week’s Violence
Bombs sent, guns shot. And I cry. Histories hidden, truths buried. And I ache. Hateful laws, escalating harms. And I mourn. White terrorism, everyday violence. And I rage. Black folks targeted. Jewish folks targeted. Native folks targeted. Latinx folks targeted. Migrant folks targeted. Trans folks targeted. Femme folks targeted. Marginalized folks targeted. Targeted, passive voice. Failing to name the assailants. Failing to name white supremacist, ... Read more ...
Loving to Read Again
During graduate school, there were many weeks of being so overloaded by assigned reading that I couldn’t do it all and felt constantly behind. I recognized that the goal was to learn to skim and to put my hands on more and more research, even if I couldn’t savor many pieces. The trouble was that the more I couldn’t savor what I was reading, the more I associated reading itself with feelings of being overwhelmed and behind. When I shared with a mentor how stressful ... Read more ...
Blessed Change
What does it mean to turn our lives upside down? How might looking at the world differently inspire new perspectives? What new perspectives are needed to enact more equitable relations? In recent weeks, I’ve been pulling this “Blessed Change” card whenever using Doreen Virtue’s “Marginal Mermaids and Dolphins” oracle deck as part of everyday divination, a meditation practice for grounding and interpreting lived experience. I started pulling divination or oracle ... Read more ...
![New month, new waves of gratitude.
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*THANKS* to Patreon supporters for believing in the work of Heart-Head-Hands.com and supporting through small monthly donations.
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I wish I could sit down and share a meal with each of you. Here's an effort at virtual meal-sharing--with a photo of me enjoying an all-vegan + gluten-free Ethiopian dinner (one of the many things I love about living in DC). Let me know when you're in town so that we can share a meal together.
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[Image description: Beth sits behind a dinner table, hand perched on a large platter that includes stews, sauces, and veggies -- all served on injera. Ready to eat.]
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And want to support the work of Heart Head Hands: Everyday Living for Justice?
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Consider becoming a patron, and receive monthly Q&A newsletters (last month's delivered as a video from my kitchen table). Link: https://www.patreon.com/bethgodbee ...
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#thanks #gratitude #mealsharing #vegan #veganblogger #veganblog #veganglutenfree #glutenfreevegan #patreon #patreoncreator #patreoncampaign #patreonsupport #supportartists #supportwriters #writersofinstagram #bloggersofinstagram #blogger #bloggerlife #thankyou #community #communityofsupport](http://scontent-lga3-1.cdninstagram.com/vp/37724106ad70e2ed3192e9a32548677f/5D75AEBF/t51.2885-15/sh0.08/e35/s640x640/54512871_444039536138510_6566513645336989925_n.jpg?_nc_ht=scontent-lga3-1.cdninstagram.com "New month, new waves of gratitude.
.
*THANKS* to Patreon supporters for believing in the work of Heart-Head-Hands.com and supporting through small monthly donations.
.
I wish I could sit down and share a meal with each of you. Here's an effort at virtual meal-sharing--with a photo of me enjoying an all-vegan + gluten-free Ethiopian dinner (one of the many things I love about living in DC). Let me know when you're in town so that we can share a meal together.
.
[Image description: Beth sits behind a dinner table, hand perched on a large platter that includes stews, sauces, and veggies -- all served on injera. Ready to eat.]
.
And want to support the work of Heart Head Hands: Everyday Living for Justice?
.
Consider becoming a patron, and receive monthly Q&A newsletters (last month's delivered as a video from my kitchen table). Link: https://www.patreon.com/bethgodbee ...
.
.
.
#thanks #gratitude #mealsharing #vegan #veganblogger #veganblog #veganglutenfree #glutenfreevegan #patreon #patreoncreator #patreoncampaign #patreonsupport #supportartists #supportwriters #writersofinstagram #bloggersofinstagram #blogger #bloggerlife #thankyou #community #communityofsupport")
