Uncertainty — Why I Love/Hate It and How to Embrace It

Wild and Precious Conversations

Well, good morning! I recorded a new introduction to this, my second ever episode of this podcast. This morning as I was getting my coffee, I was overcome by a wave of hopelessness — things looked bleak.

The hopelessness rises when things seem certain — and that’s when I remembered that the one thing we can count on is change and uncertainty. And that gave rise to a bit of hope.

A few notes: I listented to a wonderful podcast episode this morning with Steven Leavitt of Freakonomics fame. His podcast, People I Mostly Admire, is lovely. This episode is a hope-filled beauty with B.J. Miller, a doctor who focuses on end of life care.

Of the people I am closest to who have died, I am very blessed that all of them died peacefully at home, surrounded by those they loved. This is weirdly rare, and B.J. Miller is working to change that.

His life story that centers on uncertainty, though, is also important: When he was a sophomore at Princeton studying Chinese, he and some friends were out walking late at night to get a sandwich when they stopped to climb around on a trolley car. B.J.’s metal watch arced to the tram’s electric cable and he nearly died. Listen to his story on the podcast - well worth the time.

He lost limbs and his story of re-emerging into life is an important story about uncertainty and how to approach this one wild and precious life we are given. I encourage you to listen.

The theme this week was Uncertainty and man alive was that easier to do in a highly controlled written format.This week, after many, many, many iterations, I just hit record, entered the arena and started talking. See what you think: I start with a small 2-minute rant, then move into a lovely way to frame both unhelpful and helpful responses to uncertainty and finish with a story shared this week by a friend.

Yes, she shows up with a healthy dose of courage and vulnerability in the face of uncertainty and slays.

Links

* People I Mostly Admire — Interview with B.J. Miller

* Medium — Facing the Scary Boundary Between Competence and Incompetence

* Life On the Lake — All About Growing Up and What Defines Our Very Selves

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