We Are Not Asking the Right Questions - Episode 35
This week’s episode features Bridgid. (This is not the same Bridgid as featured in episode 20, T. K. Bish. That is Bridget.) In today’s conversation we covered Bridgid’s bucket list items:, who she’d like to have coffee with and deeper topics like learning the power of asking the right questions through a venture she shares with her husband which was at his request. It’s been a beautiful, life-changing experience. You will enjoy hearing all about it.
Bridgid learned to say yes to something she initially wanted to say no to. She discovered by stepping out of her comfort zone she received far more than she gave. I like their idea of engaging in conversations with those we might not ordinarily talk to - so much we can learn from each other - just by listening. Another takeaway is the myth of not being good enough. We have to stop believing that lie. That’s what it is. Let’s claim and proclaim the truth. You are already, right now, good enough. Believe it. Live it.
Yes, Bridgid’s voice is soft and low in the beginning especially. It gets better as the episode goes on. Thanks for your patience while we all learn these new things and do the best we can while recording remotely. Good news! Oscar, the Sound Designer and I are having a virtual meeting today and he’s going to teach me some things. Yay!
Creative. Compassionate. Interested.
— Bridgid
Women with Moxie
Thoughts from We Are Not Asking the Right Questions
I enjoyed the variety of things Bridgid and I talked about. One of the things that stuck out for me, other than her courage to do A-mall-ogetics (talking to people at the mall about life’s deep questions), is this idea we are drawn to strong women. Women with moxie. I am a word nerd. Is there such a thing because I do not claim to be a “wordsmith,” which is a skilled user of words. Yeah, I’ll stick with word nerd. That works, and feels right. I love words and because I do I had to look up the synonyms for moxie and they are as follows:
boldness
fearlessness
fortitude
grit
guts
spunk
stamina
tenacity
toughness
Is this not a marvelous list of words? Because they are more than words they are the essence, the being of strong women, of women with moxie. Look at this list and try each word on. See if they fit. I hope they do. I would venture to say each guest that has been on the show has these qualities. I hope we all have these qualities. If we don’t let’s get them!
And that brings me to female characters with moxie. I thought it would be amusing to come up with a list of well-written, well-acted female characters that have had made an impression on me, and likely you too. (And if you’re young-ish maybe you’ve caught these on a streaming platform, your mother made you watch them, or you need to add them to you list.) I chose characters as opposed to the actors portraying them, because let’s face it, we don’t know these women personally. But we do know their characters or at least how they are written and portrayed. (We’ll do females from books and plays another time.)
These are in no particular order:
TV: Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern (The Mary Tyler Moore Show). Who could forget the unlikely close friendship these two shared along with their adventures? While they were looking (or waiting) for love they were content to lead/live independent lives with dedication, fortitude and moxie. And most importantly, each other.
Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz (The I Love Lucy Show). Lots of hijinks, frequent fights but the closest of friends. They had each others backs! Ethel was always, eventually game for one of Lucy’s “plans.” They loved and lived for each other with boldness and spunk.
Monica, Rachel and Phoebe (Friends). These ladies stayed the course of friendship. They were tough and had grit. Not to mention they were quirky, embraced life, and most importantly, not afraid to be themselves.
Movies: Aurora Greenway (Terms of Endearment) She is SO herself she doesn’t know how to be one iota less. All in, 100%. Stamina and guts in spades. Check out the way she interacts with Jack Nicholson’s character. And her love for Debra Winger’s character, playing her daughter, is a fierce example of love. (“Give my daughter the shot!”)
Erica Barry (Something’s Got to Give) Erica is fearless. A strong, accomplished playwright not looking for love and yet she’s willing to be vulnerable and open her heart to Harry (Jack Nicholson, again) despite her usual neurotic instinct to run. The running has to do with fear. She stays open enough to embrace the fear, work through it, and tenaciously find herself. The best version of herself.
Ally Maine and Esther Hoffman (A Star is Born 2018 and 1976 respectively) Both women living to sing and making a living doing what they can to make ends meet until they can sing again. These actresses do not have to “act” their singing because they are both extraordinary singers without a camera nearby. The characters they portray exude moxie. They are fearless. They are strong. They are invincible. They are woman. (Do you hear Helen Reddy in the background singing?). Drop the mic.
Grow up to be a woman with moxie.
A flower doesn’t worry about competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms. — Zen Shin
(All four of these flowers grew up to be women with moxie.)
