I listened to a long podcast today. Jordon Peterson interviewing author Iain Geschrist about his latest book.

This was one I had to pay attention to. They were ping ponging from subject to subject, all with the theme of the two hemispheres of our brains having very different functions.

Concepts and theories were tossed out with lightning speed. Sometimes this kind of intellectual banter is just what my brain wants and responds to. Iain and Jordon are two very smart individuals with some very interesting thoughts to ponder.

Here’s what Iain had to say about the right and left parts of our brains. Left brain function stays within the parameters of what it knows. It’s where our memory is. It sorts and sifts and categorizes everything. It doesn’t respond well to new information outside of how it can fit into the known subsets. It might even ignore or edit or reinvent to have new information fit with the old. The right brain is associated with unconscious, with the big picture, with experience and feeling. It’s our emotional center. It’s how we are able to take in what is truly new and different. It’s where flow and balance can emerge. We need both these parts of our brains to balance out how we process information and to keep us alive.

Our right hemisphere controls the left side of our bodies and visaversa, including our right and left eyes. This is true for most animals, so much so that a bird will turn its head to look out of the opposite eye depending on what it’s looking for.

I’m surprised that we don’t pay more attention to this when it comes to learning. Each side of our brain has specific functions which are all about how we learn, remember, pay attention etc

When I used to teach art, I told the kids we would be exercising the right sides of our brains and give the left a break. I had several lessons that shut down the verbal left side almost completely. Kids stopped talking. The teachers would marvel at that because it happened organically to even the bounciest classes.

One thing Jordan and Iain agreed on was the need for our two hemispheres to work in harmony with each other. It’s not just about balance, these two sides give us a well rounded relationship with taking in knowledge and using it.

Why wouldn’t schools spend some time and energy on brain balance? New information can be tricky at first. Old information can get lost or forgotten. We live in an Information Age now. I think its cool to know some things about how our brains learn and assess the world.

All I need is a little excitement. A small incentive to keep putting one foot in front of the other. All is well, all is good. Our next leg is coming up soon and I am tired. I don’t see rest as a possibility, so my only choice is to power on.

Sometimes I don’t enjoy being intuitive. It’s hard to bump against awkward energy. I sometimes can’t find words for how I feel. For years I just thought it was my imagination. Those old days when I was told I was ‘too sensitive’ if I had strong feelings. I can remember even after I grew up and had kids other parents smiling and pretending no one was sad or mad or upset when they clearly were. Now when I walk into a room or up to a person, I at least don’t think I’m crazy or wrong, but I still need to work through how I feel. It’s my choice to feel and move through my feelings and find my balance.

This is not easy. Practice doesnt all the way make perfect. The only easier part is that I know what it is. I recognize the feeling, I know how to balance. I know a thing or two about breathing. It’s just that initially, I always feel every bit as bad, every bit as uncomfortable and dis-regulated. I’m no stranger to depression or discouragement but they are not states I want to stay in.

So here I sit in the sunshine. Here I sit looking at the water, listening to waves crash, birds call to one another, soaking up some vitamin D and trying not to ask any questions that I don’t want to hear answers to. All is well. The weird energy can’t reach me on this windy expanse of beach. Im good. Im breathing. I’m looking for what I AM grateful for.

It will all blow itself out soon enough. I know enough not to hold out for something to come along and change. I know I don’t actually need any outside occurrences to save me. I can save me. I can balance me. I can breathe and remember the things that I’m grateful for and wait patiently for my new thoughts to bring new feelings.

They say this. It’s not about the destination, it’s all about the journey. No story is worth telling (or hearing) if you skip over the twists and turns, and go straight to the ending.

I’m about to head into another part of this little journey of mine. I’m not sure how it will play out, (which I suppose will keep me interested and going), adventure will do that, even if it’s not death defying).

After Spring break, I have some opportunities to read my book in classrooms. Kids will be brutally honest. They will give great feedback. I will come away with good information to help me to ‘know my audience’ even better.

This is a book for teachers and children. It’s for parents too of course, but so far my professional friends (school district, teachers councilors and the kiddos I know etc) seem to be the most excited.

I find it encouraging that the topic of student mental health is starting to be a conversation in school districts. Programs are being implimented for all grade levels. At last this important topic is being addressed. My hope is to give all kids a leg up in this highly stressful landscape. Everyone can benefit from self regulation, these school children are the future, they are their own future as well as ours. Why not give them some mental tools for success? Isn’t that the point of school? I know I’m not far off on this.

So now I have some dots to connect. I’ve had some amazing advice. I’m way out on an unfamiliar limb here, but luckily my curiosity is piqued. Beatrix Butterfly and Peaceful Hearts are exciting projects that aim to meet mental health with simple practical suggestions that are proven to help. Written for a wide age group and even for the grown up reader, the message is universal. Breathing can help a stressed state be calmed into a regulated one.

Here are some things that came to me after I wrote the post that answered the ‘no’ prompt. It feels like I’m being schooled today.

Its worth a bit of a laugh and well, I should probably pay attention.

So, I guess that’s that!

Spring Equinix. It’s here.

Since the first of January I have had the privilege of hanging out and wintering in CA. Seeing my friends and family, walking the beach, working on my books. It’s been a dream that keeps on going. I have been here throughout all the things I hoped to be a part of including celebrating Equinox with my friends.

Tonight is the actual moment when day is exactly as long as the night. Cultures have been celebrating this yearly time of new birth for centuries. We humans love the beginning of warmer days, of melted snow and green. Why not celebrate the first flowers of the season? In California, springtime is warm enough to sit around a pool or lie on the sand of a beach and so we have. I’m even a little sunburned from outr days on the beach and at the pool. Celebrating the sun and everything Spring has been wonderful.

Spring has always been a good time for me to start new things. Or begin again the things I’ve fallen out of habit with. I like to reset intentions., get back on track, summer is coming and I want be ready. I might even like the process of getting ready.

Post note:

I’m not sure how I missed posting this, but I did. Life moves pretty fast. This past week has been windy and plans have changed and then changed again. My little life feels like it’s caught up in the wind, blowing this way and that. Some days it feels like a hurricane, other days a gentle Spring breeze. One thing I know, is that I will never forget this particular time. There’s a significance I feel around all of it.