out the window last week (shared on Instagram)
I read my friend Aidan Donnelley Rowley’s post last week with great interest. I love what Aidan has to say about permission and privilege and playing if safe. She was moved, as I was not long ago, by Tara Sophia Mohr’s powerful book, Playing Big: Practical Wisdom for Women Who Want to Speak Up, Create, and Lead
I texted Aidan to tell her I liked her piece. And I shared one tiny typo I found in it (aside: those people who email me to let me know of my typos here – and there are usually at least one per post – THANK YOU!).
Then my heart stopped. She had misspelled “scared” as “sacred.”
sacred
scared
But aren’t those things close to each other? How have I never noticed before that they are the same word? What is sacred scares us? So we should listen to and pay attention to what scares us, as it might point us to what is sacred?
I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this. It reminds me of the way that longing lives inside of belonging. Words carry so much power, so much meaning, don’t they? I don’t have much brilliant insight today other than the awareness that scared and sacred are the same word, intertwined in an inextricable way, two sides, perhaps, of the same coin. I vow to pay more attention to what scares me.
I’ve never noticed it, either, and now I don’t think I’ll be able to see either word any other way. An apt post for these sad, difficult, scary days.
Adding Tara’s book to my to-read list!
What now? I just had a moment. A mind-blowing, WTF, how-did-I-not-see-this moment. And your post hit me on a day when I was open to really hearing this. It’s been a rough morning. This will be on my mind all day. (Hopefully longer.) Thank you.
I’ve done this typo myself and it always catches me. I so hope that our fear which is so clearly manifesting in the world can be transformed into something sacred.
BTW I never saw the longing in belonging before!
This sacred/scared connection hadn’t occurred to me either. So thought-provoking, as always. xo
Wow. So much to think about here, Lindsey. Thanks for pushing me to reflect on these two words.
I loved Aidan’s post and I love this!
Lindsey I love this reflection. This week I wrote a piece that was extremely difficult for me. The question was whether I dared to share it. I thought for a long time before hitting “publish” — but in the end speaking my own truth felt almost like a responsibility. Not something I was eager to do but a nearly sacred duty. Or perhaps a scared duty. I’m with you! ((And Tara Mohr inspires me, too.))