Hi there editor! You may decide this blog isn’t quite right for what you need and I want you to know, that’s OK. You can tell me, I’ll adjust. I’m more a a minivan, than a Mack Truck so it’s easy for me to make a quick turn if I need to. I’m putting it out her because maybe it will help someone. Here we go;
Hi, I’m Alex Perry I’m the author of Minivan Mogul: A Crash Course in Confidence for Women and I operate Practically Speaking, LLC where I help professionals communicate with confidence.
Earlier this month I embarked on a dry January and I’ve been chronicling the experience in my Facebook group and on my podcast. I’m putting this blurb out here on Thrive Global because the words I wrote about the Inauguration brought comfort and hope to some of my readers and I hope they bring hope and comfort to you. Here they are;
I didn’t celebrate the first woman in the White House with wine or bubbles. I had tea and shed tears of joy with a clear head and heart. I’m so unbelievably happy to see a woman take the reigns of the second-highest office in the nation.
I’ve done my best to steer clear of politics. Partly because I don’t feel qualified to speak about them, and I worry that my words will not convey my heart’s full depth.
I also avoid them because I hold tightly to my ideal that there’s always room for more in the minivan.
And more, as I see it, includes but isn’t limited to;
-debates
-challenges
-perspectives other than mine
-differences
-love
-hugs
-peace
-smiles
-laughs
The only thing there isn’t room for is hate. Hate doesn’t get a seat in the van.
The hardest part of the last four years, for me, has been watching people tear each other apart. Friends unfriending friends, families refusing to talk with each other, and at our very worst, allowing destruction and death in the very place where order and justice are supposed to thrive.
I recognize that yesterday was a day of huge celebration and a day of huge loss for many people. It’s like riding in the van, the view is different depending on where you sit.
I don’t know what kind of day it was for you, and that’s OK; it’s not my business. If it was a celebration, I celebrate with you. If you are hurting, I hurt with you. Two things can be true at once.
I don’t need to understand your political views to love and respect you. I don’t need to understand your political views to have compassion for you.
As I see it, my job is to make my van safe so love can come in and do the work that it always does if we allow it.
Passengers here are free to come and go as they please. I don’t keep the van doors locked. Although I’d be lying if I didn’t say I want as many people to stay as possible because I think we’re better together and the road of life can sometimes get very lonely.
It’s naive, I admit, but in my mind, there’s space for everyone if we do the work to find it. And when everyone has space and feels safe and loved, the world heals, and we achieve peace.
Wouldn’t that be something?
Thanks for reading.
I have a seat saved for you.