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Reflections

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If it’s all I can take I’ll remember it all, remember it all. If it’s all I can take I’ll remember it all. One moment imprinted inside my mind. – Remember by Kari Kimmel

The song above has been my theme song for days now.  I reflect on my life and grief and loss.  If I could keep a jar of all my favorite memories I would!  I skate over the pain of the past and hang on to find all the goodness and sweetness of the nectar.  I go over wonderful life memories in my mind trying to somehow hang on – not forget.  Why do I have this sudden urge to hang tight all of a sudden?

My mind is like a machine pulling data and pictures and savoring it all.  I want to go back and savor it the way I couldn’t before.  Am I afraid that I will forget? Am I afraid that if I don’t remember then it didn’t happen?  My eyes water as I hear these words.  If I can’t remember then who will?  If I can’t remember then was it all an illusion?

I’ve been very reflective these past few days.  Most likely due to the fact that death has showed itself very close to home.  First the death of Prince and then the death of my Aunt. She was the eldest of my father’s side of the family and the first to die out of his siblings.  One person was an icon a pure music genius.  The other person was my aunt, a woman with three kids and six grandchildren.  She was by all means a normal person.

However, one commonality is strung between them.  They lived a life in which they were loved by people who mourn them now.  They lived a life in which they will be remembered somehow and in some way.

Maybe I don’t need to hang on to every memory but instead bask in the sweetness of a life lived with joy, sorrow, jealousy, anger, pain, laughter, confusion, messiness, happiness, and love.

 

 

Lessons from Dash the Dog…

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Meet Dash, a loving, fun and happy Papillon and Pomeranian mix.  We are happily dog sitting for one of our dear friends who is celebrating a long weekend away.  You would never know that only a few months ago Dash was attacked by a bigger dog during one of his regular walks.  He was bit on the neck and had a tube sticking out of his neck for weeks to help drain his wound.  Knowing Dash’s history I wanted my home to be comforting and calm.  My dog who has not had any traumatic issues just ignored happy go lucky Dash.

Dash was warm, friendly, loving and trusting.  I was in awe of how he was so loving and sweet.  He even met my parents dog who is a much bigger German Shepard.  Dash was just curious and cautious but very open and willing to meet him.   Thank you Dash for teaching me that no matter how hurt and bruised we can get with life it’s okay to trust again.  It’s okay to trust that we can be happy again, to trust that we can be playful again and trust that we don’t always need to be afraid of being hurt again.  If we choose to live in fear then we may miss out on making new friends, finding new love and just miss out on having a happy life.

Thank you Dash!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coaching Testimonial

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Jean helps me navigate through EVERYTHING.  She gives me practical tools to nurture and empower  myself.  She validates my experiences and thoughts.  Under her guidance, we flush out deep-rooted struggles and find ways to address them with
honesty, courage, and love.  She doesn’t offer quick fixes, but her  anecdotes, visualization techniques, and self-inquiry exercises encourage me to  work through my obstacles.  She has a great memory, and follows up with me  in order to track my progress.  I came to her feeling unbalanced, lost,  stressed, and generally unhappy.  Now, I’m able to look at my experiences  with more clarity. Thanks to her coaching, my personal growth this past year  has been tremendous.

Grace –  Los Angeles, CA

 

Testimonial of Coaching Services

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Coach Jean is the “Real Deal”. She has a unique and intuitive style of coaching. She listens to what you’re saying, but also what you’re NOT saying. She’s helped me with my challenges and given me the insights that I couldn’t see on my own. I also get homework assignments from her. They are very useful and practical, which I don’t mind at all.
She has given me the tools that I needed and helped me with my progress, my journey. I can’t say enough about her commitment, honesty, (sometimes too honest!) sincerity, caring and wisdom. Thank you Coach Jean!

V.L. – Fitness Trainer, Los Angeles CA

2016 Year of Letting Go!

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I can’t believe we are embarking on a new year!  Time is just flying by with or without us.  I realize that it’s true as we get older the concept of time changes.  I start questioning how did I get to age 38 when I just turned 30!?  Now as I am heading towards my 40s it’s hard to believe that so much of my life has been whizzing by – way too fast.  I’ve done so much yet feel like only so little.

What do I still need or what am I yearning for?  I’ve been trying more meditation and more little joys in life so far and it has been very fulfilling.  In addition, my theme for this year is Letting Go!  I’m letting go of the B.S. that is weighing me down and that doesn’t ring true anymore.  So wish me luck and I’ll take you on this journey of letting go!  How can two words be so hard to do?

Happy New Year full of peace, joy, love & health!!

 

Testimonial of Coaching Services

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Testimonial

Last year, soon after a long-distance move and a career change, my marriage fell apart and I felt like my entire life was falling apart along with it. A friend introduced me to Jean and I cannot stress how instrumental Jean’s coaching was in getting my life back on track. A little over a year later, I’ve rediscovered who I am and what I want out of life. Jean helped me set goals and act on them. She used powerful visualizations and meditations to give me a sense of clarity about what happened in the past and what I want in the future. I’m now enjoying success at work and I’m challenging myself by learning new activities including sailing, Jiu Jitsu, cycling and running. I’m living the life I want and that is such a gift. Coaching with Jean has been incredible. The best decision you will ever make.

– Aaron

11/1/2013

My Daily Sails

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Recently I was reminded of how to take inventory of life by using myself as the tool.  How often do you check the gas gauge in the car?  I’m hoping frequently or it could be stranded city for you!  I try to check it regularly at least before I start to drive or if I know I’m headed to unfamiliar territory.  Now, how often do you check the internal gadgets in your body that tell us, caution there could be rough seas ahead?  It’s so easy to be disconnected with our feelings and find ourselves running empty at times even lost aimlessly in life.  We’ve forgotten to check the gas gauge within and at times find ourselves stranded or heading in unfamiliar territory.  How did I get here?

I have often heard that life is a journey to a particular destination.  However, I have also heard that life is more like a sailboat. For some reason this analogy seems to resonate.  It’s so important to check our internal compass on a daily basis.  How am I feeling today?  Do I really like this “friend” or is that person just in my life because they have been here for years?  How much do I really like my job or am I here because I’m afraid of the unknown and suffering silently?  I challenge you today to reflect on that little voice that has been speaking to you but you’ve been shutting out the noise.  What is that voice telling you?  What are the emotions that are bubbling to the surface?  Pay attention it could be leading you to change the sails in the direction of the wind.

“Just a dream and the wind to carry me soon I will be free.”

Sailing by Christopher Cross an oldie and some say a goodie!

Good Year Blimp

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I stated in the last post that life has been a journey of uncertainty and silent victories along with pain and joy.  Well, today I will attempt to describe all the uncertainty and pain of loss.  Big challenge, right?  I will need to thank my dearest friend and esteemed colleague, Crista for this coaching homework.

If you’ve been one of those who faced grief in the face and lived in the quick sand of loss – this post is for you.  Loss is loss.  This could be a bad break-up, a loss of someone you love dearly, a divorce, a beloved pet that is no longer with you or even the loss of the life you thought you would be living.

We are all human and grieve universally.  However, it’s nothing like they tell you “time heals all wounds.”  I question this blanket statement because this has not been my experience.  Wounds that are deep don’t really get easier with time.  It hurts today the same way as it hurt when I found out a dear loved one died.  Actually, I just learned how to manage the pain with time. Each person grieves and deals with difficulty very uniquely.  We all need to honor pain and deal with it individually.  Not one fingerprint is the same and there is not one right way to heal.

The city has grown up around it over the centuries. It feels like a precious wound, a heartbreak you won’t let go of because it hurts too good. We all want things to stay the same. Settle for living in misery because we’re afraid of change, of things crumbling to ruins. Then I looked around to this place, at the chaos it has endured – the way it has been adapted, burned, pillaged and found a way to build itself back up again. And I was reassured, maybe my life hasn’t been so chaotic, it’s just the world that is, and the real trap is getting attached to any of it. Ruin is a gift. Ruin is the road to transformation. – Eat Pray Love

This quote describing Rome also describes what happens to the soul when we are hit by ruin. Ruin places us on a different trajectory of life, hopefully towards transformation.  We keep going, we keep moving to one day filling our days with more silent sweetness and loud laughter that keeps us full of hope for something more, something better.

What do you know for sure? (As something Oprah would ask a guest)  My answer would be is that I fill my life with love, so that the pain of loss is equally balanced with love and joy.  I fill my days with things I love love to do.  I love coaching.  I love bringing people to see their full potential and authenticity.  I love writing and finding my creativity.  I will continue to discover all things in life that brings me joy in hopes that loss becomes just a smaller piece of who I am and not an all-consuming identity.  I hope the same for you.

-Dedicated to J.  I will always look for the Good Year Blimp and know that you are never too far away.

Happy New Year 2015

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I’m thrilled to start my 2015 with this new blog site.  I feel like this has been a dream come true and what a long five years to get here.  It wasn’t a straight shot as life never really is but more of a windy path of roadblocks, hail storms, quiet sunsets, soul-stirring moments and uncertainty.  As Elizabeth Gilbert stated in her book Eat Pray Love, “I think about the woman I have become lately, about the life that I am now living, and how much I always wanted to be this person and live this life, liberated from the farce of pretending to be anyone other than myself.”