Vonda's Vlog

It's been six months since I departed Temecula, CA for my Zigzag For Zero. Dozens of interviews and vlogs later, I've come full circle. There is a bit of catch up to do here for the vlog. Stay tuned over the next week. For now, take a peek at this gorgeous arrival at dawn.

After the completion of a big event, it's time for something completely different. Thanks to my son's partner Maren I had an opportunity to work at a distance in a community garden here in Lowel. Check out Mill City Grows if you are in the area or curious. 

Over 80 people dropped in for my daylong Zigzag birthday. The conversations were illuminating and have certainly given me a lot to ponder during my 54th year. I'll be posting several segments on the Zigzag YouTube channel over the next few weeks. The first one is already there, an inside look at what it has taken to produce the Unite For Safe Care event. 

During the day I modeled transparency, invited peer review, and heralded the Unite For Safe Care campaign, which has developed over 30 plans of action to ensure that every person who delivers or receives health care around the globe can do so safely. Please consider one or two simple things you can do now to prioritize safe medical care in your own life or that of a loved one. 

1. Pay tribute to someone you know who has experienced unsafe medical care or advocates for safe care.
2. RSVP for an inspiring program that broadcasts September 17th.
3. Learn more about how to be safe when you receive or deliver medical care.
4. Make a donation to help us ensure that safe medical care is prioritized everywhere.
5. Light up orange for World Patient Safety Day, September 17th.
6. Call your local media outlet and ask them to cover this critical topic for public health.
7. Call your legislators and ask them to prioritize medical safety by supporting a National Patient Safety Agency.

It takes me quite a bit of time to stay organized as I Zigzag For Zero across the USA, especially during a pandemic. I do my very best to keep others and myself as safe as possible. Here's a quick peek inside the papers I accumulate and the bags I carry.

While preparing for a longer walk, it's great to get out for five or so miles nearly every day. In the city of Minneapolis, along the miles of green space, I find myself at home. Though this is not the city of my birth, it is the place that sparked my creativity as an adult. Today, I am out on a walk with beloved Theodore Charles Bates III, who is Yogiraj's beloved middle son. 

My zigzag from Oklahoma through Missouri, Iowa, and to Minnesota was a much longer trip than anticipated. The last forty-five minutes was less than safe, due to my fatigue. In this vlog, I acknowledge how this is akin to delivering safe care for others. Will you join me in uniting for safe care? Start by making a course-correcting plan when you know you've been less than safe in a responsibility.

Learn more here: https://patientsafetymovement.org/unite-for-safe-care/home/

What I proclaimed as rain coming was in fact the Sahara dust cloud sweeping through Oklahoma; many are calling it Godzilla. Sometimes what we know to be true - just isn't. Sometimes something so massively impactful is hidden in plain sight and we innocently deny it. At 10th Dot, we attribute this tendency to our Big Bad Wolf, who is also our greatest teacher.

On July 1st, I'll launch an eleven-week Zoom series discussing Yogiraj's second book, Pigs Eat Wolves; Going into partnership with your dark side. In these times of angst for so many, it can be helpful to clearly identify our Big Bad Wolf. Our wolf helps us WAIIT, ask Where Am I In This? WAIIT helps identify underlying agendas, which can complicate things while we are navigating life's challenges.

Want to meet your Big Bad Wolf? Want to learn to love yourself unconditionally? Join me for eleven calls to explore your dark side. There is no fee for the weekly zoom calls. Register here.

The online training has 35 lessons and can be purchased here.

I've zigzagged from Colorado to Oklahoma. Here, from the room my parents dedicated to Yogiraj, it occurs to me that in these dramatic times people are rising up to fix what WE know has effective solutions. By WE, I mean millions of people banding for a globe that seeks every person's sacred right to be safe from oppression.

I've been wowed by the swift progress being made to address systemic racism these last few weeks. And I recognize that it's because people have been brainstorming and testing solutions for decades. Organized dismantling of norms that should never have been formed is difficult work, whether it is taking place for a city, a school, a precinct, a hospital, or otherwise. This is a time of fixing what we know has solutions. 

Today, I added another interview to the Zigzag For Zero YouTube channel. Ken Thai addresses the role pharmacists have in delivering safe medical care. If you have ever filled a prescription, this is relevant to you and your safety. Take a look. 

Want to form a WE. Take a look at our online program, We Can Relate. 

The Zigzag for Zero brought me to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado for a couple of days. As I looked outside for wildlife it became clear that part of what many people are grappling with right now is our fixation to tame our sometimes wild (and I think wonderful) inner nature. There are many things we miss because we too often try to restrict our own nature, or that of another person. No good comes from the oppression of ourselves or others.

Today, Dr. David Mayer and several of us who walked with him for all or part of 129 miles to every training ballpark around Pheonix, crossed home plate at Sloan Park, home of the Cubs. Check out this TV news coverage. You'll see me waving by. 

Like millions of people, I wake up, daystream, go to sleep, and nightdream about creating systemic change so that all life may thrive. The beloved Yogiraj Charles Bates did so too. And, he helped train hundreds of people to do so effectively.

As his wife, I had the honor of watching his dedication and skill every day for years. His family and loved ones also reaped the fruits of his passion that heralded lives and love with wisdom and competence. I ask for his guidance from beyond every day and am never disappointed. My last miles for this walk are dedicated to Yogiraj and our 'WE' (we cared for and named our relationship as an entity called WE), which continues to serve a world that benefits all with equity. If you want the skills of a master here are two online programs he created that may serve you. We Can Relate and Pigs Eat Wolves: Going into partnership with your dark side.