Glorious Ordinary Podcast

What I Did All Day

This essay is about coercive control and domestic violence, about autonomy and who gets to decide how we use our time. AI: I do not use it in any part of my creative process: from conceiving and nurturing ideas, to editing drafts, to writing and recording final essays or podcasts. Everything you listen to and read—including the em dashes—is the work of one human. I am a writer, poet, life coach and someone who has lived with type 1 diabetes for 30+ years. I’m launching a new newsletter this month, Type 1 Diabetes Dilemma. Stay tuned! I’m also refocusing my coaching niche to work with people living with type 1. Glorious Ordinary is reader-supported Substack newsletter. If you like what you hear, please go here: https://valeriespain.substack.com/ [https://valeriespain.substack.com/] And become a free or paid subscriber! Get full access to Glorious Ordinary at valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe [https://valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Apples for Eve

A Romance of Apples It’s unlikely Eve plucked an apple from the Tree of Knowledge since up until the 17th c. the word “apple” was a generic term [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apples_in_mythology#Legends,_folklore,_and_traditions]for all unknown, i.e. foreign, fruit, excluding berries, though it did include nuts. What fills out heads Eve disgraced herself when she ate from the Tree despite God clearly saying absolutely not! but even as a child in Catholic school I could not condemn her. To name out of all paradise the one thing denied her, so Eve would spend those first days walking around with apple apple filling hours in her head- ~from "Original Sin" a poem by Lucia Perillo How could she think of anything but apples after that? Regarding AI: I do not use it in any part of my creative process: from conceiving and nurturing ideas, to editing drafts, to writing and recording the final essay, everything you read and listen to is the work of one human. * I’m a writer, poet, life coach and someone who’s lived with type 1 diabetes for 30+ years. I’m focusing my coaching niche to work with people living with type 1. I’m “in the gap,” someone who always does “fine” clinically, but gets little emotional support (from the medical profession) re how to navigate daily life with a chronic condition. If that sounds like you, we might be a good fit. You don’t have to do it alone. *I’m excited to launch a new newsletter this month, Type 1 Diabetes Dilemma, about my my journey and ongoing insights. Get full access to Glorious Ordinary at valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe [https://valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Tethered to Love

Right now, the activities I embrace without hesitation are playing with children and holding babies. And holding the hands of grown up people who need their hands held. And hugging those who need or want to be hugged, including animal companions. The particular difficulties of my life feel like so much drivel when there’s a baby asleep on my chest, or I’m making pillow forts with a five-year-old, or holding the hand of someone happy or grieving, anxious or excited. Those experiences reinforce a believe that the love inherent in those actions has the power to vanquish political leaders who break people and infrastructure with no intention of mending. I need to feel that love as often as possible. We need to step into a deeper conversation about enchantment and agape, and to actively explore a greater capacity to love other humans. The old ideas—the crushing immorality of maintaining the nation-state, the life-destroying belief that to care for others is to be weak, and that to be generous is to be foolish—can have no future with us. ~Barry Lopez, from Embrace Fearlessly the Burning World What if holding was the starting point? What if hands and children were held as much as they needed to be held? What if the Donalds and the Petes, the Pams, the Kristis and the Elons got the love they needed at all the crucial points they needed to receive it? How about that? Everything is about love and the absence of love. When I am not tethered to love I am lost. I want lie down, pull the blanket to my chin and sleep for a very long time. But babies, children and grieving adults, even pets, do not owe me love or comfort, so when they are absent, I find both, walking, hiking woods and mountains, and meandering through fields and along riverbanks. Long ago, I stumbled into a grove of pine trees in a Maine forest, and one invited me to lean against it. The only requirement was a desire to lean. It is more important now to be in love than to be in power. ~Barry Lopez This is an essay from my Substack newsletter, Glorious Ordinary, which you can read here [https://valeriespain.substack.com/]. Regarding AI: I do not use it in any part of my writing or recording processes: from conceiving and nurturing ideas, to editing drafts, to writing and recording the final essay. Everything you read and listen to is the work of one human. Let’s work together! * I’m an executive and life coach, and my niche is working with people living with type 1 diabetes. I've lived with T1D for 30+ years, and share a compassion borne of lived experience. I work with people "in the gap.” Folks who are doing "fine" clinically, but get little support navigating daily life events. Diabetes inserts itself into every aspect of life. You don’t have to manage alone. Contact me here on Substack, or LinkedIn. [https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriespain/] * Mindfulness is key to my work and writing. Find my talks and guided meditations on Insight Timer [https://insighttimer.com/valeriespain]. Get full access to Glorious Ordinary at valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe [https://valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

How We Live Now

Life waylaid me this week so I’m reposting an essay relevant to these times. This now is no different than any other now. The place we find ourselves isn’t anyplace new, and the consequences of choices made will unfold in the places it always has—neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, small towns, big cities, every place we live, work, play. Be kind and generous—throw your arm over someone’s shoulder and pull them close. I write, produce and narrate these essays. I also write poetry. Contact me for projects and collaborations. I am a life and executive coach, and a meditation teacher. My coaching niche is working with people with type 1 diabetes. I bring a compassion borne of lived experience to my work. Message me on Substack. Glorious Ordinary is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Glorious Ordinary at valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe [https://valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Roots of Anger

This is a clip of my Insight Timer talk about irritation and annoyance which are at the root of anger. Find the talk here: The Roots of Anger: Irritation and Annoyance [https://insighttimer.com/valeriespain/guided-meditations/the-roots-of-anger-irritation-and-annoyance] And the companion meditation here: Meditation: Releasing Irritation [https://insighttimer.com/valeriespain/guided-meditations/meditation-releasing-irritation] Get full access to Glorious Ordinary at valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe [https://valeriespain.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]