Travel – Page 3 – Life Unfolds Blog

Labyrinths and Leadership Laboratories

Last Friday through Sunday Brighid and I co-led the third retreat of the 2007 Cheryl’s Dreaming Big leadership program in Indiana. Our retreat kicked-off with some intense storming (literally – lots of thunder, wind and rain; and figuratively – lots of group tension and unresolved issues). I must say it was pretty exhausting and challenging to hold the space for this natural, yet difficult, phase in team development.

One thing that helped me get through it was walking through the labyrinth at the retreat center. Before entering the path, you can hold an intention or inquiry. For me it was around how can I stay with the mess of the storming phase. With every twist and turn, I questioned, “How much longer? When will this end? Where is this going?!” And then I relaxed into it and trusted that I would find my way to the center. I leaned into this insight throughout the weekend. Labyrinths are a great meditative and focusing tool. There’s this really cool portable labyrinth that I imagine would have a similar effect.

The other take-away I had from the retreat was remembering that the program we created is a great laboratory for learning and practicing leadership, not only for the participants, but for myself as a co-leader as well. Brighid kept reminding me of the lessons from an insightful book called Leadership and Self-Deception. This powerful parable reminds us to relate to people as people with hopes, dreams, needs, wants instead of objects or obstacles that our in our way. By shifting my perspective to being “out of the box” I was able to rise above the muck of the storming and group dynamics and reconnect to who these wonderful people are and what they have to offer. The other thing I kept coming back to was the idea that from the crap of group storming comes the fertilizer which nourishes the ground for a beautiful garden to grow. It’s a natural cycle.

How are you with conflict and tension? What are some ways that you move through the storming in your life? How has going through the muck helped new opportunities to blossom for you?

[tags]labyrinth, leadership, leadership and self-deception[/tags]

Birthday Weekend

My mom and I share the same birthday. I guess you can say I was her birthday present! This past Sunday, my mom celebrated her 70th. We threw her a party at my brother’s house in Southern California with 40 of her closest friends and family. Some of her girlfriends are from back in her Junior High days and it’s always fun to see them together laughing and having a good time.

While we got things cookin’ in the kitchen, my mom relaxed and knitted a sweater she’s working on. Since it was my day, as well, I made sure to take a break from all the prep to do something nice for myself (as us Ladies Who Launchers would say). My brother has a nice swimming pool in the backyard, so in the afternoon I went for a quick dip to cool off. It was fantastic and just what I needed! And earlier that morning, my dad took my mom and I out to brunch at a yummy place called Dish.

My nephews are so cute! Matthew donned chef’s attire and served his specially concocted appetizers of “mini sandwiches” while dapper Austin greeted guests at the front door and took their coats. Matthew is very artistic and Austin is very athletic. It’s fun to see how different they are. Matthew, being the artist that he is, drew a handmade card for my mom. It was so darling and included a picture of a “grandma” knitting on the front, similar to the photo I took above!

For my gift, I had each guest write a special message on a little card to place in a handmade blessings box for my mom. She was touched by all the wonderful sentiments that people shared.

I hope that when I’m 70 that I am still as creative and active as my mom. And that like her, I am surrounded by so many people who love and care about me, too.

[tags]family, birthday, blessings box[/tags]

Catching up from Ketchikan

We returned from our Alaskan cruise on Sunday. Since I hadn’t had a chance to post yet about our final port visits, I thought I would do a quick catch up from where we left off… in Ketchikan.

Plus Brian just posted some amazing pictures from the trip that I wanted to share. That’s him on the whale watching boat with his monster lens. He also used that to get super close up shots of the glaciers, so check it out!

On Friday we spent a short stay in Ketchikan which is Alaska’s first city and the salmon capital of the world (according to the sign!). Since the zip line excursion and lumberjack show were sold out, we ended up taking the “Duck Tour.” What is a “Duck Tour” you ask? Well, it’s a ride around the town’s streets and waters in an amphibious bus/boat. And to make it complete they have quacking duck whistles for purchase on-board. Needless to say, we didn’t partake in the raucous! Not surprisingly, Ketchikan, like the other ports we visited had it’s share of totem poles and brothels. There seemed to be a theme!

In Victoria we only had time to grab a nice dinner with our friends Julie, George and their son Jaden (that’s us eating dinner together on the cruise ship a couple nights before). Wow, non-cruise food never tasted soooo good! We wished we could just stay ashore and hang out in the beautiful downtown Victoria a bit longer. We peeked in a couple of shops on the main street before things closed down for the evening.

Definitely seems like a wonderful place to come back and visit again when we could have more time to explore. I had visited there with my parents when I was about seven. The street lamps flanked by flower pots are still as charming as I remember.

Before heading off to the airport in Seattle on Sunday, we were able to get in a couple of hours at Pike Place Market. A feast for the senses, the market overflowed with fish mongers, colorful flower stands, piles of fresh, organic produce and other gourmet delights. We also saw the original Starbucks coffee shop which, like all other Starbucks, was a hub of activity. And we enjoyed a delicious bowl of chowder and a crab sandwich before dashing off to catch our plane.

Back on land, I’m glad to be home. I enjoyed the natural beauty of Alaska’s landscape. Yet, it’s really nice to be in capris, a t-shirt and flip-flops again enjoying the famous California sunshine!

[tags]travel, Alaska, cruise, Ketchikan, Seattle[/tags]

Glacier Bay

One of the highlights of cruising Alaska is viewing the magnificent glaciers from the boat. This morning we floated along Glacier Bay in the southeastern part of Alaska.

We saw Marjorie Glacier up close and even witnessed some calving. A thunderous boom was then followed by chunks of ice falling into the water. It was amazing to see the cracks and crevices of this giant masterpiece of nature.

Later we saw John Hopkins Glacier from a distance. With its winding path of ice it’s easy to imagine it carving away the valley between the tall rocky mountains.

There are 14 glaciers total in Glacier Bay park and we were fortunate to see four of them in this beautiful, pristine sanctuary.

It was pretty chilly on deck, so I was glad that I brought my super warm parka and bundled up! And that Brian was there to keep me warm!

He was using his huge telephoto lens and got some really nice detail shots of the glaciers.
[tags]travel, Alaska, cruise, Glacier Bay[/tags]

Mush! Mush!

Today we docked in Skagway, an old gold rush town that was once full of brothels. Brian and I strolled the quaint main road in the morning. Since we weren’t really into buying furs or jewelry, Brian shots some photos of the town while I got in some quick painting.

In the afternoon we headed off to our musher’s camp and sled dog adventure. I’d been looking forward to seeing the pups all day!

The chorus of dog barks reverberated from the musher’s camp as we approached the entry way. Although we didn’t do the grand tour that takes you on a helicopter to see the dogs on a glacier, I still enjoyed the carriage ride through the woods. These working dogs, eager to run, jumped in the air raring to go. According to our guides, they are pound for pound as strong as horses and getting pulled along the trail by 16 Alaskan huskies, we could sure feel their power.

At the camp, one musher hailing from Massachusetts shared with us his tales of 140-mile a day runs with his dogs. His passion for these pups really came through and it was cool to hear about his experiences out on the tundra.

And then of course, the moment I had been waiting for… the chance to cuddle with puppies! I got to hold a really adorable Huskie/hound pup who really loved chewing my scarf, jacket and even earrings! What a cutie.

This picture is of a young dog named Silver. I’ve been studying how Brian shoots pictures of Emmett!

[tags]travel, Alaska, cruise, Skagway, dogs[/tags]

Whale Tales

We started our Alaskan cruise on Sunday. Granted this is our second cruise in less than a year, we are NOT cruise people! I repeat we are NOT cruise people! We had booked this trip with our friends Julie and George before we went on the Mediterranean cruise with Brian’s family in the fall of last year when we learned we don’t really dig the cruise lifestyle. Anyway, it’s pretty funny, though, because even though we’re on a different ship since it’s the same cruise line the ship is almost identical to the one we were on for nearly three weeks. So the good thing is, we know our way around. Plus, it’s fun to be hanging out with friends this time.

After a day at sea, we docked in Juneau. Our adventure for the day was whale watching aboard a really fast jetboat. We spotted sea lions swimming in the water and some lounging lazily on a colorful buoy. A mother humpback and calf surfaced and we caught sight of them briefly. Although we didn’t get too close to the whales, it was cool to see them spray up water with their blow holes (our guide said at rates of something like 320 mph!). We learned about their migration patterns between Alaska and Hawaii. They come up to Alaska during the summer months to feed on the rich algae-filled water and then migrate back to the warmer oceans of Hawaii to mate and then later to give birth. One interesting factoid that he shared was that you can tell the age of a whale by looking at its ear wax. Gross but kinda cool! Much like the rings in a tree trunk, the layers of wax indicate years of age on a whale. The darker rings are from the six months when they are in the Alaskan algae rich waters and the lighter wax from the six months when they are in Hawaii.

During our tour, we also spotted several bald eagles. These majestic birds can have wing spans up to 7 feet! Alaska is definitely teeming with beautiful wildlife and lush scenery.

[tags]travel, Alaska, cruise, whale watching[/tags]

Seattle Visit

Before embarking on our Alaskan cruise, Brian and I visited one of my dear friends from Leadership, Lisa and her family in Seattle. I hadn’t seen Lisa in about a year and a half, so I really enjoyed catching up in person and hearing about how well her life is going. And I hadn’t seen her daughter Willow in more than two years. She is a real sweetheart and has the cutest smile and laugh.

We went to a park near Washington Lake where many families were barbequeing, swimming and having a good ole time. Willow peddled her Radio Flyer tricycle around the trails and played on the slides and swings. Lisa even showed us the Willow tree she and her husband Kelly planted for Willow on the banks of the lake. Kelly is a helicopter instructor and while we were playing with Willow at home, we heard a helicopter hover over the house. At dinner we found out that it was indeed Kelly circling overhead to say “Hello!”

On Sunday, Lisa took us out to the Fremont fair where we browsed many booths of unique and artistic wares. Fremont is a funky little part of Seattle. It even boasts a neon Rapunzel sign with blond hair hanging outside the window of the draw bridge leading into the town. I loved the neighborhood tour of the city and getting a taste of Lisa in her element. What a treat.

[tags]travel, Seattle[/tags]

Sailboat Wedding

Brian photographed Scott and Nicole’s sailboat wedding on Thursday. Witnessing a touching and intimate ceremony on the bay… what a fantastic way to spend a lovely Thursday afternoon!

We sailed from Tiburon to Angel Island as we took in the the gorgeous San Francisco skyline and stunning scenery. We docked in Angel Island where they exchanged their heartfelt vows. And as Scott kissed the bride, a nearby boat sounded their horn to seal the deal!

What I really loved about this adventurous couple is that they were so present with each other from when they were manning the boat all the way through their ceremony to eating wedding cake together. Scott, Nicole and their family were tremendously gracious in how they so warmly welcomed us into their celebration. The love and tenderness between them all was so palpable. I also enjoyed getting to see Brian in action and to reconnect with the wonderful memories of our own wedding more than five years ago!

[tags]sailboat wedding, wedding photography, Tiburon, Angel Island[/tags]

Meeting Carly and Stedman

Carly Fiorina, former CEO of HP, gave a key note speech at the final day of the eWomen Network conference in Dallas. She shared personal stories of her humble beginnings in the business world, about the challenges she faced early on as a young career woman in a man’s world and her insightful perspectives on what leadership means. She describes leadership as seeing and seizing possibilities and helping others to do the same. She mentioned that it’s about helping people face and overcome fear. And it’s about making change happen. According to her, change is driven by leaders and is powered by collaboration, which is why Carly says, women are natural born leaders.

Not only was her talk inspirational and thought-provoking, it also rang true with authenticity and courage as she spoke from the heart. I look forward to reading her memoir “Tough Choices” to learn more about this amazing female leader.

Stedman Graham also spoke to us this morning on building a personal brand. It all starts with really knowing who you are first and living according to that (not by what others label you – he shared in his case he was labeled with self-defeating thoughts growing up in a community that didn’t think he’d go far and now days being referred to as “Oprah’s boyfriend!”). He had some pearls of wisdom to share about making sure to fill your own well first before being able to fully give of yourself. In fact, he had asked Oprah if she could share some advice with the group. So he whipped out his Blackberry and read to us word for word an e-mail she sent him from South Africa telling us that she was replenishing her own well by spending time with the girls at her Leadership Academy!

Stedman was gracious during the book signing making it a point to shake everyone’s hand and being very present with each and every woman who stood in the long line to meet him. I picked up his book “Diversity: Leaders not Labels” and am excited to read his perspective on moving beyond race toward more collaboration and appreciation of the uniqueness we all bring.

[tags]eWomen Network, Carly Fiorina, Stedman Graham, book signing, conference[/tags]

Drumming to Our Own Beat

I arrived in Dallas, TX yesterday to take part in the 2007 eWomen Network Conference this weekend. More than 2,000 women entrepreneurs have descended upon the Hyatt Regency from all over the U.S. and Canada to connect, share and learn from each other. So many things have transpired already, but below are a few highlights.

Last night was the Femtor Awards Gala. Many amazing women won awards for all their wonderful achievements. The most moving part of the evening was when Julie Rems-Smario was honored as the Humanitarian of the Year for her work as Executive Director of Bay Area’s non-profit DeafHope which helps Deaf survivors of domestic and sexual violence get the care and support needed to protect themselves and their children. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house!

The talented group from Drum Cafe led us in a lively tribal drum circle to kick-off the festivities this morning. The room pulsed with energy and aliveness as all 2,000 of us banged away on our African drums while chanting this year’s conference them “Daring. Determined. Dynamic.” I loved when they had one half of the room drumming and the other side listened while having our hands touching the drum. We could “hear” their beat vibrating through to our fingertips. What a cool visceral way to experience a form of “dialogue.”

[tags]eWomen Network, women entrepreneurs, conference, drum circle[/tags]