Episode 5: Michelle Currica

Michelle Currica tells us about her travels, how acting on a whim can result in positive surprises, and why giving herself permission to be happy makes her happy.

Show Notes

Happiness is a state of mind; it’s your choice. Being in the moment makes Michelle happy

Michelle gave herself permission to embrace the moment, but she has to remind herself to do so on a regular basis; one moment of realization was when she was in Japan, after ending a relationship, doing a pilgrimage when she realized that being in the moment is the most effective way to be

Choosing to be happy has consequences; you may hurt other people because they don’t understand that your choice for happiness doesn’t have to do with them.If another person needs constant reassurance that everything is ok, that may be harmful to them<

There are more things to be thankful for than there are to be unhappy for.

You can see the changes in other people, both good or bad; but if you don’t fit in each other’s picture anymore, then it is time to say goodbye. Some people can’t understand that it’s ok to be happy

In the US we think we need to have things, or look a certain way to be happy, or to have accomplish certain things to be happy; we need to allow ourselves to be happy

Jealousy exists, we all have it, we all feel this way, but if we catch it we can pull yourself back from it and just accept what is happening in front of you without that layer of jealousy

Preparing for her ten-year graduation reunion from Agnes Scott College, Michelle got caught up in the idea of having to impress others and showing off he accomplishments and realized that’s not what it’s about; she still feels nervous about who she was then and who she is now and catches herself

Michelle wanted braces growing up because she has gap teeth and she hated her smile; her parents wouldn’t let her do it because that is a trait that runs in their family and is something her family’s culture (they are from Guayana) find beautiful; now Michelle embraces this trait and refuses to have it corrected

Sometimes Michelle wishes she can conform, but in a way she can still be unique; when she was in Japan she was in a town where the population was mostly children and seniors, and people weren’t used to seeing a black person and they would follow her around the supermarket seeing what she was shopping for

When people stay isolated in their culture and don’t explore outside of it, you don’t know how to accept difference

Growing in Memphis, Michelle had a view of Black History, and now in Philadelphia she is seeing another facet of Black History. Philly is a city of immigrants, a city of arts, a city of national history

We don’t always give each other the opportunity to hear the other person’s story

Sometimes acting on a whim can prove to be a good thing. At a party, Michelle met a guy who invited her to check out the Aikido dojo he attends. Normally she would have thought that this guy was just pestering her, but Michelle decided to look into it and went to the dojo and as a result she has been practicing Aikido over the last two year.