Reflections on 2021

Let me join the chorus in saying, it’s been a difficult year.?From the harrowing scenes we watched unfold in our nation’s capitol as the year began, to the constantly evolving virus that held us in its grasp, we were challenged to find forward momentum this year.?In my coaching practice, I often ask my clients how they are taking care of themselves, encouraging them to find space for reflection.?In keeping with that advice, I turned to poetry for insight and sustenance. ?Working with my poetry coach, Justin Balog, and a cohort of coaches led by Chris Wahl and Barbara Braham, I found solace and perspective in poetry of all kinds.?Poems are meant to be shared, read aloud, celebrated.?Let me share a few of my favorites with you here in the hope that one might be just what you need.

“Sometimes I want simply to sit alone a long?time

in silence. America, you must want this?too.” – Kathleen Graber

?The deepening social and political unrest in our country have left me with more questions than I can bear. Kathleen Graber’s poem America (Peaches) ??is a lament that poses the questions I silently harbor.?The closing lines of this poem left me with a strange sense of peace that perhaps we can find our way to higher ground.??

??“For a life in the past cannot be shared with the present. Each person who gets stuck in time gets stuck alone.” – Alan Lightman

?Time seemed to move more slowly in 2021.?I had a sense that every three steps forward were equally met with two steps back.?During a particularly frustrating time of the year, I read Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman at the recommendation of my coach, Justin.?The book is a collection of stories meant to reflect the dreams Albert Einstein might have had in 1905 while he worked on his theory of relativity.?Each vignette plays with the notion of time empowering the reader to imagine their own construction of time. Endlessly inspiring, the book is a feast of ideas for a time when the rules are anything but clear.???

?“when i watch the news i hear my name, but never see my face. every other commercial is for taco bell. all my people fold into a $2 crunchwrap supreme.” – Jose Olivarez

?Exploring identity became increasingly important to me as the year progressed.?Latino USA host, Maria Hinojosa, suggested that the conversation about Latinos in the U.S. is one long conversation about identity. ?I find Maria’s statement to be mostly true both within and outside the culture.?Almost every conversation with a Latino/a starts with, “Where are you from?” The answer creates the shape of our connections. While conversations with those outside the culture demand the answer to the same question as a requirement for belonging.?I threw myself into Latino poets – Martin Espada, Ada Limon, Alberto Rios, Jose Olivarez, Octavio Paz, Pablo Neruda - sometimes seeking an anthem but mostly just listening.?The poem I Walk Into the Room and Yell Where All the Mexicans At by Jose Olivarez tingles with anger and resignation, ultimately recommitting us to the endless conversation about Latino identity in the U.S.?

?“Let them not say:????they did nothing.

We did not-enough.

Let them say, as they must say something:?

A kerosene beauty.

It burned.”?-- Jane Hirshfield

As 2021 draws to a close, I find myself thinking about how I intend to live the new year.?Jane Hirshfield’s poem Let Them Not Say sparkles with resolve inviting us to celebrate our resilience with hope. Where do I have the most and the least resolve? ?How will I end and begin new ventures in the year to come??Can I cherish even more the precious moments of being in communion with my friends and family?

?May the new year bring you moments of deep reflection and lasting insights.?

?Happy New Year

Anna Alvarez Boyd

Executive Horizons LLC, CEO

A Modern Day Salon, Partner

FairWays to Leadership, Co Founder