Brown Enough: Unplugging and Taking Back Space with Christopher Rivas

We are bombarded at every waking moment by all the noise society feeds us. This noise molds our beliefs about ourselves and everything around us. But unlike what it says, the world doesn't only revolve around black and white. What does it mean not to be part of this conventional space? Where does it leave you out of this conversation? Unplugging from the noise is a long journey ahead, but it's the first step to taking back your space.

In this episode, Rosie speaks with Christopher Rivas about the lessons from his book, Brown Enough. Christopher shares the incident and questions that inspired the book. He talks about unplugging systemic beliefs and what the process of self-inquiry is like. He also speaks about what it means to have a beginner’s mind and the power of having an open heart and taking up space.

If you want to undo the plugs that are keeping you small and start taking back your worth, this episode is for you!

Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode:

Go through the step-by-step process of self-inquiry and self-awakening.
Understand the role of the beginner’s mind in living a worthwhile life.
Learn the biggest takeaways from Brown Enough.

Resources

Connect with and learn more about Christopher Rivas: Website | Instagram
Rubirosa Podcast
Brown Enough by Christopher Rivas
Ta-Nehisi Coates’s website
Insight Meditation Society
The first 10 people to tag Christopher and Rosie on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook will get a FREE COPY of Brown Enough!
You Are Radically Loved by Rosie Acosta
Radically Loved is now part of the iHeartMedia Podcasts
Email us your topic at info@radicallyloved.com.
Create a daily meditation ritual in just seven days! Download BUILD YOUR DAILY MEDITATION RITUAL and other freebies here!
FREE Action Guide! Apply the lessons you learn from this episode as you listen! Sign up below, and I’ll send it right away!

Episode Highlights

[02:59] What Inspired Brown Enough

[01:08] Christopher: "All the little brown kids who need to see themselves grander and more vibrant but don't, I see you, I hear you, we hear." - Click Here To Tweet This

Christopher’s main inspiration for writing the book was hearing Ta-Nehisi Coates’s talk about race at a library in downtown LA.
The talk only revolved around black and white.
Christopher asked where that put him in the conversation as a brown kid, and Ta-Nehisi replied, “Not in it.”
The questions that emerged from that incident inspired the book.
At its very core, the book is a culmination of Christopher’s big questions in life.

[05:25] What the Process of Self-Inquiry is Like

The beginning of the awakening feels like a violent wave that keeps hitting you.
Then, it starts to integrate into your body until you start to accept and find your voice in it.
It takes a lot of work to unplug; it’s a choice you have to make.
Christopher has reached a place where he feels calm with it. A lot of his work is about unplugging from the white binary world.

[07:44] The Most Difficult Plugs to Undo

The plug of acceptance—to be desired by whiteness—was the most difficult to undo.
It comes from his chosen career in Hollywood that commodifies him.
Another is the plug of the system he’s participating in that serves his “success.”
Once you see the elephant in the room, it will keep haunting you.
It’s hard to change your life and take back your worth, but it’s worth it.

[09:36] Christopher: “Ignorance is bliss until you've tasted bliss and then the rest is just ignorance." - Click Here To Tweet This

[10:22] Always Lie When Someone Asks You if You Meditate

He lied that he meditated when a woman in his theater conservatory asked if he did.
They ended up dating, and he continued on with the lie.
Her birthday gift for his 21st birthday was going to a seven-day silent retreat at the Insight Meditation Society in Massachusetts.
Going to the retreat was the hardest, best thing he ever did in his life. He has meditated every day since and came clean to his then-girlfriend.
Anytime in silence is a time to see yourself for better and for worse.

[12:23] Christopher: "Anytime in silence is a real-time to be able to see yourself, for better and for worse. And if you're courageous enough, really or for worse, like you get to really see who you're trapped in a phone booth with, which is your crazy, wonderful self." - Click Here To Tweet This

[14:59] The Role of the Beginner’s Mind

Christopher tries to start anew and have the courage to unlearn or rediscover something new every day.
The beginner’s mind means having the courage to live in the unknown.
The unknown is far more exciting and full of miracles than the known.
Your imagination is limited to what you know.
Living in a place beyond your knowing is how you meet someone else’s genius.

[15:32] Christopher: "The unknown is far more exciting and full of miracles than the known." - Click Here To Tweet This

[16:36] Meeting People with an Open Heart

Influence is not always a bad thing when you’re conscious of what’s coming in.
Being open about what you don’t know doesn’t affect your worth.
The survivor, cutthroat competition mentality is an innate human element.
Meditation allows us to meet people with open hearts and open minds without categorizing them.
You are one tiny universe, and another person is a tiny universe. You can make a third tiny universe together if you’re both open to it.

[19:30] Stop Doing the Formula

We do so much formula in our heads whenever we meet someone new.
What would it feel like when you stop the math?
Our own problems are the most important problems to each of us.
Traveling is special because you can be somewhere else where no one else matters.
All things matter, but they also don’t matter. The math we do in our heads is the noise running through society.

[23:17] Everything and Nothing at the Same Time

As an artist, Christopher is interested in art that knows its value and knows it means nothing all at the same time.
That type of art is an art that's alive and will last a lifetime.
We are vibratory beings. The things with the highest vibration know how powerful they are.

[23:39] Christopher: "We are vibratory beings. We're all vibrating—everything is vibrating. The things with the highest vibration, know how powerful they are, know how many spells they're casting with each thought, with each word, with each action but know that they're also a speck of dust all at the same time." - Click Here To Tweet This

**[24:17] Brown Enough Audiobook**

Christopher personally narrated Brown Enough’s audiobook version. He had to audition to read the book.
He did it in New York because so much of the book takes place there. It was grounding for him to be among his people as a New Yorker.
The last chapter sums up the whole book. But the chapter he found a lot of deep love and appreciation for was the chapter on student loans.
The job of a storyteller is to disrupt the system that doesn’t care about us and create communities of care.

[29:29] The Biggest Takeaway from Brown Enough

Words are spells in your mouth.
Christopher hopes that the book is a spell of self-worth and taking up space.
Radical change and shifts can happen in radical love—when we cast the spells of self-worth.

About Christopher

Christopher Rivas is an American author, actor, podcast host, filmmaker, essayist, storyteller, and speaker. He is best known as Oscar on Call Me Kat and as the creator of the solo play, The Real James Bond… Was Dominican!. He is the host of the podcast, Rubirosa, and the author of the book, Brown Enough. Christopher uses storytelling to disrupt the possibility of what can be.

If you want to connect with Christopher, visit his website and Instagram.