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How to Find Our Footing at Times of Uncertainty
The new year has begun amidst troubling global events, causing anxiety and concern. Reflecting on a V-formation of geese, the author emphasizes the importance of community, self-awareness, and support. Finding connection, practicing kindness, and engaging creativity are essential for maintaining hope and mental well-being during challenging times.
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Whether you are hosting, traveling, or taking a break to care for yourself and your loved ones, I want to take this opportunity to wish you all an enjoyable and heartfelt Thanksgiving. I hope you can find goodness, gratitude, and grace as you prepare for your Thanksgiving celebration. May you connect with all that is yours to love, care, and cherish. May you find comfort in warm memories and create new ones, and may your heart be full as you linger around the Thanksgiving table with your loved ones. Today, I thought I would share some of my favorite quotes and an excerpt from a poem I wrote about Gratitude. Anxiety…
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How to Find Our Way Through the Muck of Negative Thoughts and Emotions
This is the time of year when I write about the messages and metaphors of Spring as they relate to our new beginnings, and there are many. All one needs to do is look around and notice how everything is coming alive again, rapidly and undeniably, in glorious colors. The barren landscape of winter is giving way to life and new growth. In my garden, the trees are leafing out, and something new is blooming every day. The birds and the squirrels are keeping busy preparing for the months ahead. Every day, at 05:32 a.m., the birds begin to sing, announcing the beginning of a new day and urging me out…
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Finding Balance And Joy This Holiday Season!
As I try to gather my thoughts and put something useful on paper, I can feel the weight of all that has happened this year. We have three weeks to the end of 2023, and much changed in the world and our personal lives. December is the last month of the year and the first month of winter. It is also the month of many cultural and religious celebrations and rituals. Most people would agree that December can be hectic. Articles on surviving family get-togethers, gift shopping, traveling, and social events are hard to miss. The thing is, I love this season and its rituals, and the older I become, the…
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Self-Doubt And What To Do About It
Have you noticed how self-doubt often creeps in as you try to complete a project, decide on a new direction, or open up to a new relationship? On good days, I think of self-doubt as a friend. It can test your resolve, strength, and perseverance. Yet, when self-doubt is allowed to go unchecked, it can paralyze you and hold you back. I know self-doubt well. I can trace my relationship with it back to childhood, pinpointing times and events in my life when the seeds of self-doubt were planted and watered regularly. Hard as you may try, self-doubt cannot be defeated by ignoring it or by wishing it away. You pick…
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In Gratitude
We're approaching Thanksgiving week. How do we celebrate in this new environment? Can we begin by breathing in gratitude for all we have, here and now? These days I try to focus on what I can do in the present moment instead of getting frustrated with my limitations. I appreciate even more the gifts of ordinary moments.
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On Absorbing Joy
Hello everyone, How are you feeling? I just wanted to let you know that I’m thinking of you and sending you all warmth and peace. Today, I’m sitting down to write about something really important and hard to remember as we’re navigating these days of uncertainty and anxiety. For the sake of our own resilience, we need to strengthen our capacity to accept and absorb joy. Sharon Salzberg It’s been getting harder and harder to find our capacity for absorbing joy, hasn’t it? We’re in the midst of a pandemic and there’s no end in sight. People are losing their lives and livelihoods. Then, there’s the election on Tuesday, and emotions…
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Sacred Space
Your sacred space is where you can find yourself over and over again. Joseph Campbell Lately, I’ve been waking up even earlier than usual. Fall has already made its entrance, and I find that I need more quiet, alone time with myself. It’s dark outside when I make my way downstairs. The light arrives faintly around 6 am. Nature comes alive when we’re going to sleep, and the animals wrap up their activity as the morning light announces itself. The coyotes are having a howling convention in the late evening hours. As I tiptoe around my kitchen in the early morning hours, I catch glimpses of activity I wouldn’t have noticed…
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The Transformation Process
“Sweetheart, you are in pain. Relax. Take a breath. Let’s pay attention to what is happening. Then we’ll figure out what to do.” –– Sylvia Boorstein Recently, I came across this quote by Sylvia Boorstein. This was not the first time I read that, in her effort to cultivate loving-kindness, Sylvia addresses herself as “Sweetheart,” especially when self-criticism and self-doubt bubble up. Today, as my daughter and I were driving to visit a friend, I found myself sharing these words with her and talking about the importance of practicing loving-kindness and how this practice needs to also include ourselves. It has never been easy for me to include myself in the…
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On Strength, Health, and Sanity
The day after Paying Attention was published, I received a thoughtful email from a friend and faithful reader of my posts. She usually writes back to let me know what the post meant to her, asks me questions, and at times challenges me to go deeper. These email conversations have become our little ritual, and I love it. After I posted Paying Attention, I sat with what I had written. I felt that the post was incomplete. There was more to say about how each of us is handling the tremendous stress and pressure we’re experiencing. There’s nothing straightforward about our current, collective experience. When I received my friend’s reply to…
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What’s in a Day
A couple of days ago I was listening to Tara Brach as an intro to my morning meditation. In her talk, she referred to RAIN: Cultivating Mindfulness in Difficult Times; a four-step process we can use when we find ourselves in the grip of difficult emotions. When we can’t see the forest for the trees, RAIN can help us cut through the stress and confusion by: Recognizing what is happening. Allowing what is to be. Investigating our experience, gently without judgment. Nurturing what needs to be nurtured, with kindness. As I listened to Tara Brach walking me through the four steps, I found myself at a place of honest recognition and…
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On Self-Compassion
I woke up Monday morning (last Monday that is) feeling energized and ready to go. I had plans for the week ahead. In addition to the usual tasks, I was going to write, reach out to some friends and family members, and begin setting the foundation for new projects. My intentions were good and I had the energy and inspiration to match them. It didn’t exactly go as planned. It’s now a week later. As I sit down to write this, I look back and wonder where the days went. My mood began to deteriorate from the get-go. It was a rainy and cold week. Neal and the girls were frustrated.…
