Our human life is the means we have to be deeply at peace and to realize our true nature. Yet it can often appear far too full of problems, disappointments and suffering to realize such truths; we get too preoccupied with self-survival and self-preservation to reach for a greater meaning beyond ourselves. And although we […]
The Art of Mindful Relaxation And Why We Need It
I was discussing stress at a mindfulness retreat when Joe, an attendee, shared how he didn’t get stressed over any one thing because everything was stressful to him, so he would wake up already stressed. Sound familiar? We have all experienced stress and anxiety, its close companion. In small doses stress it can heighten awareness, […]
MINDFUL RELAXATION: The Coolest Way To Release Stress
Ever wondered what the biggest problem in life is? Yes, it’s the inability to relax! This is a true story: I met John at a stress-release workshop I was teaching in Scotland. He was a schoolteacher in a run down area of Glasgow. As if that wasn’t hard enough, he was a history teacher, a […]
Seeing With New Eyes
By paying attention you see all things just as they are. A monk asks, ‘Is there anything more miraculous than the wonders of nature?’ The master replies, ‘Yes, your awareness of the wonders of nature.’ Angelus Silesius We lived in Devon, on the south coast of England, and each day we would walk along the […]
The Art Of Patience
On a recent trip to India we had tea with Mary and Don, a devoted couple from Texas who, for over twenty-five years, had been running a clinic for disabled and handicapped children, for the poorest of the poor, in Chennai, South India. We wondered how, when they first arrived, they had coped with the […]
Why Saying Yes To Yourself Is The Most Important Thing You Can Do
I have too much to do! My boss is so demanding! My mother-in-law always needs my help! I have so many meetings / orders to be filled / classes to teach / deliveries to be made…the list is endless. But in the midst of everything that is being asked of you, what happens to you? […]
Why You Can Never Have Too Much To Do
Having too much to do is our most common moan. We get overloaded, overworked, over everything and don’t see a way through. Deb was just 18 when she attended her first Zen meditation retreat. “It was taught by a somewhat formidable Jiyu Kennet Roshi, a large Englishwoman in a floaty grey robe well established in […]
The Amazing Relationship Between Your Mind and Body
In Woody Allen’s movie, Annie Hall, Diane Keaton is breaking up with Woody and wants to know why he isn’t angry. “I don’t get angry,” Allen replies, “I grow a tumor instead.” We tend to think of our bodies and minds as separate systems and believe they function independently. Yet can you remember the last […]
Are You Jealous or Joyful?
With the impending Presidential election it’s become an onslaught of one-upmanship, with no concession that one or the other might actually be right or have something to offer. It’s an endless battle of my ego versus yours, my opinions versus yours, my brilliance versus your stupidity. Which is a great example of how not to […]
Do You Have Stress Or Does Stress Have You?
Imagine you are trying to squeeze some toothpaste out of a tube but you have forgotten to take the top off. What happens? Deb actually did this in one of her most unaware moments and the toothpaste soon found another way out — through the bottom of the tube and all over her. Now imagine […]
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