Keep Your Heart Open

1. Conversations with strangers are not always scary or awkward.
2. Sometimes you need to be extra gentle with yourself.
3. Real, deep conversations can change a person's way of thinking.

Hello! It's Malyn again. This week was...incredible, and incredibly busy.

Being a political science major who's passionate about a lot of things, especially during an election year, is a blessing and a curse. There is ALWAYS volunteering and voter registering and phone calling to be done (By the way, if you aren't yet registered to vote & you either live or attend school in MN here's a helpful website: the MN Secretary of State's page) ....yeah. Even in writing a blog post I can't truly escape it :)

And actually, I find myself enjoying it. This Saturday morning, instead of sleeping in, I went and did phone calling, working to prevent the "one man-one woman" marriage amendment from passing. I've done my fair share of calling for campaigns, recruiting volunteers and figuring out who people are likely to vote for, but this was completely different: We were sharing our stories and information about the impact of the amendment, and actually trying to change minds with the power of honesty and reflection, and questioning the views you've always held.

It wasn't bad. It wasn't even nerve-wracking. In fact, I truly enjoyed being able to share my story. It felt REALLY good to have an impact.

As I dealt with my learning curve and taking in new information, I thought a lot about letting myself make mistakes, forgiving and learning from them. I've struggled with depression over the past few years, and so the tendency to get angry with myself is still something I'm learning to quell. "Let it go" has become a new mantra for me.

Then, in the midst of being busy and making some mistakes, I caught the cold that's been going around campus. While musing that Voldemort's actually really lucky to not have a nose that gets stuffed, I took things slowly and gently, allowing for the fact that I didn't feel great. I even bought myself a slice of chocolate cheesecake, because the most comforting thing when I'm sick is good food.

Peace and have a fabulous week! :)

-Malyn