Bringing on the Weather

I have been thinking a lot lately about weather.

Not this gorgeous fall that has embraced my neck of the woods the last few days but the weather that we bring with us wherever we go.

A few weeks ago, Circle de Luz inducted its newest class into the program.  When we do events that involve parents, we always translate everything that is said into Spanish, too.  Because speaking in English and then translating yourself into Spanish isn’t always the smoothest transition, one of our volunteers usually translates for us.

And every single time, when I thank Magdalena, I don’t thank her just for translating—which is incredible in and of itself, I thank her, also, for the weather she brings.  Because whatever Magdalena is talking about she makes exciting, she makes you not just want to be a part of it but already feel a part of it.  The weather she bring is warm and inviting and fun.  When Magdalena talks to you, whatever worries you have, whatever doubts you have, are abated.  I am in good hands, you cannot help but think.  I want to keep walking with her.  Her passion, her mindset, her spirit are contagious.  She buoys you.

And then there is Tim Gunn.  Every time I watch Project Runway, I am struck by Tim Gunn’s dear, sweet heart.  The weather he brings is calming.  It’s all reassurance and belief in you.  With Tim near, you cannot help but feel that everything is going to be okay.  That’s pretty incredible weather to bring to a situation.

There are, of course, people who don’t bring great weather to an experience.  They are cranky or dramatic or self-involved, and when they leave the space, there is an exhale of relief not just because that bad weather is gone but also because your weather is no longer impacted by their barometric pressure.  I find that the weather I bring to a situation is greatly impacted when I am witnessing a storm in front of me.  Boy, does that make my own weather turbulent or incredibly flat.

We bring weather to everything we do—to our interactions with ourselves and our interactions with others.  That weather might vary based on who we are with, how tired we are, what happened earlier that day, but it always informs how we experience life and how others experience life as they experience us.

And so I have been thinking about what weather I bring to situations and how true that weather is to who I am and how I want to be in this world.   I am realizing that when I don’t like the weather I am bringing (and it is not because I am caught in someone else’s storm), I have likely inverted my priorities, focusing on productivity over presence or that I have said yes to something that really should have been a no when I consider my Continuum of Wholeheartedness or that some self-care has been lacking (I am tired or hungry or need to go to the bathroom or have aches and pains).

Becoming super aware about the impact that we can have when we show up has made me want to be even more in charge of my weather.   Lately, I have been asking myself, “what weather do I want to bring to this experience; what is it that I want to offer?”  Doing that pre-planning has helped me be really aware of what other stuff I might be carrying around with me that I shouldn’t allow to impact others while also making me more sensitive to what I have to offer.  While there are so many things I don’t have control over in life, I can control how I show up and what I offer just by making space for my most gracious and generous self to show up.  When it comes to weather, if I cannot be enjoying a 75 degree sunny day at the beach, I’d like to at least feel like that to the people in my life:  peaceful, full of possibility, encouraging, inspiring.

What weather are you bringing on?