Lucky #8

Exhale. Here goes...

Many of you know I had surgery last December to repair a blocked airway in my nose. To my surprise, I have to do the surgery AGAIN 😳 on Dec 7. 

This will be my 8th surgery related to being born with a cleft lip and palate. Growing up with a face that brought covert stares or kids asking their parents “what happened to her face?”-- it helped to shape who I am. Each successive surgery changed my appearance, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. 

These childhood seeds planted my lifelong attention to Belonging. And I am committed to exploring this publicly one day soon, as part of my own work, and to expose the roots of and plant new seeds for Movement of Belonging. 

For now, I am focused on getting my physical and non-physical realms ready for the next healing adventure. This will be my 8th and final face 🎉 the grand finale 🎉 and is bringing another layer of self-inquiry and insights. 

It has taken me months to accept this situation (or maybe I'm still not quite there). Kicking off another year with meds, stitches, ice packs, goopy gauze, limited mobility, and an inability to work brings claustrophobic anxiety… and I know everything is going to be okay. I am resilient. And I am anchored to the visceral image of taking the first full breaths - of my life. 😮‍💨 The potential impacts are beyond my comprehension right now.

I will gladly receive your thoughts, vibes, prayers, magic - especially on Wednesday, December 7. And now I release it to the virtual winds with gratitude, humility, and detachment. 

And a little sparkle. ✨✨