1st Tee at Riviera Golf Club

I never seem to get tired of the majestic beauty of a golf course.  I'm always so grateful to have the opportunity to be spending time outside in nature enjoying time with friends and family.  Playing golf is a great way to get a good 5-6 hours of time together!  And most of that time is spent supporting each other by cheering and complimenting one another's good shots.  It's also a great way to see how someone relates to themselves when they aren't playing well or hit a bad shot...and we all hit bad shots!  At the end of the day and with all the ups and downs of the game, I always feel like I've taken a journey like no other.  Not one day of golf is like another.  Each unique day is depicted by moods, weather, physical constitution, and energy of myself and others.  I love golf for the adventure that it is every time I play!  

Beauty of New Mexico

Local Church in Santa Fe

Taos Mountains - Sangre de Christos

El Monte Sagrado grounds - Taos

I've been to New Mexico many times in my past, maybe 20 times or so.  My grandmother lives in Taos and I try to visit her at least once a year.  Every time I go I rediscover my love for the unique culture and tranquil landscape.  I just went this past weekend, which is my favorite time of year to go when all the plants and trees are coming back from their winter slumber and everything seems so vibrant and alive.  I always stay in Santa Fe for one night before heading up the mountain to Taos.  I love all the beautiful shops and art galleries, not to mention the delicious New Mexican cuisine you can't get in California.  This past trip we ate at Cafe Pasqual's for dinner.  It's definitely one of the best restaurants in town.  Just by walking around the streets of this small town you can get a sense of the pronounced culture, which can be broken down to 3 core aspects: food, religion, art. Since my mother and grandmother both cooked New Mexican food when I was growing up, I have a true love for the unique flavors here.  Some of my favorites are hatch green chiles, posole, and sopapillas.  To get some authentic New Mexican cuisine in Snata Fe, I would head over to The Shed or Tomasita's.  
After one night I'm off to Taos where I always feel the energy is slightly pulling me into it's vortex.  Taos is in the mountains nestled in a valley, adjacent to the Rio Grande Gorge and surrounded 360 degrees by the most magnificent mountains, both peaked and plateaued in form.  It's known for it's great ski mountain, but I love it there in springtime.  Again, food, art, and religion are present here but more muted.  Taos is such a tiny town which has grown significantly due to the influx of visitors but it's still more of a hippie town than anything.  Taos doesn't offer much more than it's natural beauty and serenity, but what else do you need really?  For 2 days and 2 nights I listen to the silence and just let go.  This last time my boyfriend was with me and I found myself judging Taos as nondescript and boring.  I was judging it because it doesn't have the attributes of a city.  But the truth is that Taos is a unique and magnificent natural beauty, something that a city can never obtain.  I live in Santa Monica and going to Taos reminds me that I don't have to always move so fast and judge everything according to standards of modern society and immediate satisfaction.  My ancestors from Spain settled in Taos in the 1800's.  It's part of my history and part of my DNA, so I will return to Taos routinely if not for any other reason but to remember where I came from.

Support is Sublime

Today my project team is coming over for our team meeting to share and discuss our individual processes with our chosen co-creative projects for school.  I love being part of a team, any team really.  First when I was young and in school, I would play sports and always be on some sort of team - soccer, tennis, volleyball were my favorites.  There's something about everyone coming together under common goals.  Values of the group are spawned from such experiences and I find there to be a great lesson in co-operation.  You have to learn how to play well with others, always supporting your team with positive reinforcement and encouragement.  There's no place for pointing out the inadequacies of the individual or the group.  There's only building on strengths and creating a winning confidence.  You can rely on your teammates to have your back and to pick you up if you fall down.  I've translated this team mentality into all group activities in my life.  When I was a pharmaceutical manager, I did my best to foster the kind of team that takes pride in doing their very best every day and understands that helping each other is best for everyone.  Along the lines of "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts".   And now in my current team of four, I feel the same holds true.  I'm looking forward to the meeting today because while I'm persevering and trying to accomplish a hefty task at hand, the support from my team has become my touchstone, my accountability, and my infrastructure.  Each woman brings to the table her unique vibrancy and perspective.  I am better and my process is better for it.  I think one of the reasons I want to start a company some day is because I want to create a team environment.  I know what astounding results can take place in a business setting under the circumstances of genuine caring, specifically stated values, and support.   

The Art of Giving, The Art of Living

This week I've been experiencing huge amounts of joy with the simple act of giving, and there's so much to give!  I've arrived at the conclusion that my happiness is directly proportional to how much I give to others.  And I'm not talking about presents or money or material items, although these items are great to give also with the right intent behind it.  I'm talking about giving of myself, openly and truthfully.  And the truth of myself is that at the very core of me is loving and compassion.  So how much loving and compassion can I give to another in any given moment?  Well, I've determined that this is directly proportional to how much loving and compassion I can give to myself in any given moment.  And since I've been working on this aspect of my life for months now, I've seen a dramatic and wonderful shift in how I relate to myself with these qualities.  Real change can occur with determination, focus, and commitment.  I see now the infinite river of loving that is available to me and I intend on drawing on it to galvanize my life towards meaning and purpose.  And to come full circle, this purpose I am speaking of is making others happy by giving to them my unconditional love, attention, and admiration of their unique and glorious version of the One. 

Vision

One day I'd like to start my own company.  I've felt that all the corporations I've worked for in the past were more policy driven than people driven.  I want to start a company that has very clear values and walks the talk.  I believe that values-driven companies do perform better in the long run.  I believe these values-driven companies make for happy employees and happy employees make for successful companies.  Jim Collins' book, Built to Last, substantiates this theory with a compelling case.  I've decided that in order for me to create this type of organization, it's imperative that I am quite clear on what my values are and can state them unwaveringly...in addition to living them on a daily basis.  For example, I loved this statement on the quality of generosity from the book The Power of Full Engagement, "I demonstrate the value of generosity by investing energy in others, without expectation that I will receive anything in return, and by my willingness to put the agendas of those I care about ahead of my own, even if it means inconveniencing myself at times."  Generosity is a quality I find lacking in my character and it's something I'd like to cultivate very much.  When I think about who I am at my very best, some of the other qualities that arise include unconditional loving of others and myself, inner peace, confidence, passion, inspirational to others, service to others, authenticity, integrity, virtuous, commitment, and excellence.  There are more of course, but these resonate the most for me right now.  I've read in several books that creating a vision statement is integral to grounding myself in my values and helping to co-create the life I envision.  So here are some of the statements I'm starting with and will work with over time.  Hopefully they will help translate to me starting the kind of company that helps change the quality of people's lives including the customers, the employees, and beyond.    

I reside in inner peace knowing that I am part of a greater whole that supports me in all my endeavors.  

I commit to things after careful cross-referencing to my values and I do what I commit to.  

I appreciate myself and others for exactly who they are and give generously from a place of loving and sincerity.    

I make decisions from a place of loving in my heart.

I joyfully engage in service-oriented projects that benefit others in need.

I express my authenticity and passions with confidence, inspiring others to follow my lead.

I am unwavering in my commitment to living a virtuous life.

I strive for excellence in everything I do.  

Okay, good start I'd say.  Just writing these out makes me feel inspired to live my day to the fullest.  I'm in so much gratitude for this opportunity to co-create a life of meaning and purpose.