Responding to violence with compassion does not often come naturally. When we hear news of violence, it puts us in contact with our own vulnerability to suffering and loss. We tend to react with either fear or anger. If we look more deeply, we can see that reacting with anger is our own attempt to […]
When we focus on the good, we cultivate positive emotional states. Energy flows toward where we direct our attention. Whatever we rest our attention on grows. If we want to cultivate positive mental and emotional states, we can do this by seeking, noticing, and savoring the good experiences in our lives. We don’t do this […]
Opening your heart to the beauty that surrounds you on this Earth can support healing for the body, heart, and mind. Morning birdsong is an abiding occurrence, a daily reminder of the flowing nature of this life pulsing through the body. Like the coming and going of breath, birdsong rises and falls, both within a […]
Bird meditation is one of the most grounding meditation practices for me. On most days, I wake to silence long before the sun rises and sit with the sound of my own breath coming and going, reflecting the changing nature of all things. In winter, the first sounds are those of the stop and go […]
Practicing gratitude can support us in cultivating positive emotional and mental states and nurturing our sense of wellbeing. By simply staying here, we relax more and more into the open dimension of our being. –Pema Chodron The brain has a negativity bias, which means that it focuses more attention on what is wrong than on […]
When we are living in the moment with mindfulness, we meet whatever is here with kindness and curiosity. Yesterday I drove by a row of trees with brilliant orange-yellow leaves at the corner of Market and 15th. I’ve driven by them a number of times during the past week, and each time, I think, “I […]
We can increase willpower with meditation practice. Two of the most powerful things that you can do to create change in your world are to get clear about your intentions and practice meditation. If you can change your mind, you can change your life. –William James Research shows that people who meditate have increased grey […]
When you own your voice, you find the freedom to trust your intuition and follow it without abandoning yourself. You begin to say and do what youfeel is in the interest of your own well-being, others’ well-being, and the well-being of the Earth without allowing our fear of others’ judgment, hostility, or rejection to silence […]
What’s going well in your life? Our brain has a negativity bias, so it tends to focus more time and attention on what is perceives as going wrong than it does on what it perceives as going right. Inclining our mind toward the positive can help us to feel a greater sense of peace, happiness, […]
Sometimes in order to see the light we must become willing to sit with the darkness. Turning away from what we judge as too painful only creates more suffering. That from which we turn away longs for our tender embrace, acceptance, and compassion. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present […]