Showing up and Having Genius

I never read Eat, Pray, Love.  I know, I know, how could I even consider myself an American woman without partaking in this particular literary fad?  Meh, I just didn't really have any interested.  I did watch the movie, under some duress from my sister.  I thought it was okay, but the whole time I was just thinking that Julia Roberts doesn't really need to find herself.  She's Julia f-ing Roberts.  (Which is a problem in general with actors and celebrity culture -- at a certain point the celebrity takes over and the actor gets lost.  I'm so familiar with Julia Roberts, the celebrity, that she's lost the ability to convince me that she's anything but a celebrity.  I don't believe her as the characters that she plays anymore.  But I digress.) 

So, when my BFAM (brother from another mother, for those of you who don't keep up with my slang) suggested that I watch Elizabeth Gilbert's TED talk, I was somewhat reluctant.  As well as totally shocked that he was into it -- he didn't want to watch the movie either. But, since we had a half hour to kill, I indulged him.  And as it turned out, it was a really great talk.  Ms. Gilbert is a compelling speaker; she speaks in a way that reminds me of my favorite teachers -- building and scaffolding questions, anecdotes, and evidence around her central purpose.  Also, though, I'm completely intrigued by her idea of the pressure of creative genius and questioning the way individuals handle that pressure.  Gilbert looks to ancient Greece and Rome for ideas about how to escape the narcism and fear that surrounds the notion of being a genius.  Looking to these societies, she discovers that we can think about genius as something you are, or -- perhaps more realistically -- as something you have.  Rather than be crushed by the enormous weight of genius, she suggests that we show up, and work as hard as we can at our part.

All this is to say, it's worth 20 minutes of your time to watch her talk.

xo kate