A Word From Goldie

I recently finished reading Goldie Hawn's autobiography, "A Lotus Grows in The Mud."

Scotty made fun of me when I pulled "The Banger Sisters" out of a sale bin at the video store. Maybe I'm not 40 years old, but I like Goldie. I find her funny, and I am drawn to her free spirited nature...

Besides...

weren't we the generation who grew up watching the "Golden Girls"?



There were a couple noteworthy points worth sharing...

[1] On freeing yourself from worrying about what others think of you...

"Dr. Grearson helped me understand that the adoration or unkind criticism wasn't mine to own. That it was all about how other people perceived me to be, not how I really was. I needed to take no responsibility other than just being a Rorschach test, an inkblot that others interpreted whichever way they needed to... it allows me to not identify personally with others' perceptions, or to become wrapped up in my own defenses against them."

[2]On getting out of your comfort zone- making yourself vulnerable and open to the possibility of finding a friend in a stranger...

"One should never be closed to new friendship, no matter how old or tired or busy. Every relationship has its unique gifts... There is something about being vulnerable to a stranger. Not vulnerable in the sense of being endangered, but vulnerable in that you are in unfamiliar territory, a place where you need to avail yourself of the help and kindness of others. It not only helps you restore your faith continually in humanity, it is also so humbling... I never want to get so comfortable that I forget the importance of those small connections people can make with other human beings. When you are comfortable, you can miss so much, and I for one don't want to miss a thing"

[3]On relationships... the opposite sex...

"There is nothing more unpleasant for me than to see a man stripped of his power. Even though we sometimes feel like the weaker sex, wake up! Nations have fallen because of us. Women have the power to diminish. I have watched it happen in my own home. It is far better to respect a man who has his own life, his own excitement, his own passion. Celebrate that in him; honour his variety and his power. The next time you ask, 'why didn't you call? Why were you late for dinner? Why didn't you pick up the milk? Why don't you ever take out the trash?' or continue to jab at what you would view as his weaknesses, ask yourself; is this what you want to end up with? Is this your intention, to tame the beast? Is that the prize? The man who just says, 'yes, dear," and falls asleep in the armchair every night? Be careful what you wish for, because you might end up stripping away the vitality, the sexual energy of the man who you once thought of as your knight in shining armor."