“We have to fix climate change with the people we have right now, and to a large extent with the perspectives we have right now as well.” - Katharine Hayhoe, Climate Scientist

The tagline on the Earth Archetypes website is "Find your path from climate anxiety to community action." As I write this blog, I feel like I found a path from common anxiety to community action. Amazing how similar those two phrases are.

Acknowledge Earth Is Our Home

Tonight as I write this, I searched my brain for anecdotes.

I searched the internet for newsworthy stories.

I searched through bits and bobs on my deck.

Then I realized...

What experience I really needed.

So I laid down on the grass in my backyard and looked up at the night sky.

The surrounding trees perfectly framed one of the dippers shining through the deep blue.

You know, that magically time well after sunset but before the blackness envelopes.

And with my fully body present...

My stomach digested.

My chest expanded.

And my face relaxed.

Discover Your Earth Archetype

This week it happened! With the addition of Natalie Cutsforth's Embodiment conversation, all 5 Earth Archetypes now have an episode live on the Earthmates Podcast.

The first episode with the Origin Story will always remain a great reference point, but I've always known that these types needed stories and examples to come alive. This week was a milestone in that process.

Which ones have you listened to? Which ones do you still need to dive into?

Work Together in Community

What happens when you can't work together?

Phew! I had to face that one this week from 2 different angles.

First was Hayhoe's quote above. She is one amazingly intelligent and emotionally adapt human. Her quote struck me with it's potency. So much so that I used it as one of 5 quotes in a 3 page pitch deck I just created for Climate of AWE.

It gets at the heart of what it really means to address climate NOW! And the need to use all the tools to reach people across the country and around the world.

I'm also working on a 60 second sizzle reel, and I could tell from the first 10 minutes of bringing on a composer that we communicated very differently -- even if we are both Metaphor Earth Archetypes.

We both tried valiantly for 2 weeks. But finally, we needed to release our agreement.

And here's the thing...

I suspect we would have gotten along very well as humans. But as colleagues, the match was very off. People who have worked together to create intentional communities or neighborhoods often have the same challenges.

When our ways of being and ways of doing collide.

Climate is a similar challenge as we acknowledge Earth is Our Home.

As Freddie Davis III mentioned in his Earthmates Podcast episode, the why and the what can be agreed upon, but we can get hung up on the how.

So what happened with me and the composer?

Well, when I sent a written acknowledgement of his accepted resignation, he back peddled and tried to keep working. I gave him 2 very clear options to do that. He did not acknowledge either, so I moved on with lessons learned and found someone I'm very excited to start fresh with.

I'm both sad and relieved.

What I found with the first composer is that he needed a very specific way in order to work. When I gave my new composer some examples of notes I would give to see if they made sense to her, she replied, "My experience is that there is a wide swath of acceptable lingo to get your ideas across."

I'm excited to cycle through this spectrum with her.