I graciously blossom into my inherent receptive nature and open myself to receiving the goodness of life.
From Women Will Save the World by Absolute Love Publishing.
The Gift of Our Existence
Words spoken and unspoken millions of times Actions taken countless times throughout the day Trying at each moment to explain 'Love' As if 'Love' is a concept that can stand on its own The tendency to take concepts that are the embodiment of our soul and our being and trying to explain them as if we can remove ourself from that which by its definition is from within. This is a flaw of Western Logic. The most extraordinary pursuit we as human beings may endeavor during our lives, is to become whole, that is to fully prepare for our spiritual…
Shine Your Light
I am seeing an alarming trend of people walking through their life anesthetized. Numb. They whittle away their limited hours and days watching others live instead of consciously living their own life. They conveniently view others through the lens of a television screen, computer screen, or even a cell phone. With the push of a button, they fall into a trance of being a voyeur in the life of another and justify this as living. I want to shake them, "Wake up! Do you know how many people are waiting for YOU to fully show up in your life? You…
How I Became Aware
One of my first really big insights came when I read Fritz Perls' little gem of a book, Gestalt Therapy Verbatim. He wrote that simple awareness can often be curative. What a brilliant perspective on life: if only I could become more aware, I might be able to solve a whole lot of my "problems." Shortly thereafter, I heard Eric Hoffer say, "You can never get enough of what you don't really need to make you happy." That one got me thinking about all the "things" I had been focused on and how little they actually mattered once I had created…
Why Paying Attention Matters
Were I to leave an inspirational message for the world upon my departure from this magnificent planet, it would be simple: Pay Attention. By and large, our modern societies have imposed the tools and parameters of our utter distraction: cement jungles of our largely dysfunctional cities, inane and manipulative messages of coercive media, the goings-on of our governments with their hidden agendas, daily distractions of our runaway technologies and their abstract impressions, overlaid upon the tapestries of our richly woven lives as "spiritual beings, having a human experience." Every life is a chalice, which carries the potential to be filled…
Letting Your Inner Sun Out
We’ve all felt it, walking out of yoga class, looking at the mountains, strolling by the ocean. With our attention mobilized, another dimension opens for us, just as we are, right where we are. Suddenly, we are living in intense present-moment awareness. Life can be difficult, but the light of consciousness can be in us! Everything we need is here inside. With a receptive attention, we can perceive the subtle energy animating us. A sacred energy is coming into us at every instant, just hidden from our usual mind. Recognizing its touch takes us from self-awareness across the threshold into…
Become Aware of Your Real Wisdom
The real wisdom does not need words or explanation: it is silent. It is always inside of you, and you have to quiet your thoughts to hear it. You don’t even have to try to do anything special to hear The Wisdom. It is your essence; it is natural to you. It is who you are. You just need to be aware of who you really are. You already are everything you want to be. You are perfect, you are the Divine part of the Infinite Whole. Often you are not aware of it. Everything around you is perfect. All…
Searching for Happiness? Try Living in the Moment
I believe true happiness must come from within. And in order to “make peace” within ourselves, we must try our best to live in the moment, every moment of the day. Mastering the art of living in the moment takes courage. Having awareness of the fact that most of our thoughts are held captive in the past or anxiously awaiting the future is the first step to freedom. How do we live in the moment? By awakening to the present, clearing away our illusions or the “dust in our eyes” that cloud our ability to see what is real. Here…
Flowing With The River Of Life
Imagine walking through the woods when suddenly you begin to hear the sounds of running water. The sound touches you like music. It calls to you. Then imagine coming out of the trees and finding yourself standing on the banks of a stream that is cascading over moss-covered boulders. Pause for a moment and allow that image to nourish you. Why does moving water touch us so deeply? It may be because water flows! To watch a river is to see a glimpse into what Life is really like – a great river of dancing energy that has been flowing and…
How To Be Held By The Earth
Spring has arrived, and I invite you to take some time in this magical season to truly connect with the Earth. You are the Earth. Your bones are made out of particles that were once a part of mountains. Your cells are surrounded and penetrated by the ocean. The breath that moves through you once moved through mighty cedar trees and baby pandas. And all the plants and herbs that you partake of come from a love affair with the sun! To connect with the Earth is to remember that you are a part of the mysterious and awesomely creative…
3 Quick Ways to Access Your Inner Guru
While I have many teachers I am grateful for and whom I have learned priceless lessons from, I know that my own inner Guru is the most powerful teacher of all. When we begin to love and trust ourselves enough to tap into our intuition and Higher Consciousness, which has access to unlimited knowledge, we can truly begin to know and trust ourselves at a much deeper level and be the most powerful and trustworthy Guru we will ever find. There are many talented teachers, and I believe even one sentence in some cases from a teacher can in fact…
Honoring Stephen Levine
Stephen Levine, who is one of the most amazing hearts on our planet, died on Sunday, January 17, 2016. I am filled with gratitude for his presence and how much he helped so many of us to see through our stories and come home to our hearts. In honor of his life and how deeply he changed mine, I want to share with you an experience I wrote about after I came back from a retreat led by Stephen in 1985. I had been at a 10-day workshop with Stephen, a skilled teacher of consciousness and author of many books on…
An Invitation For The New Year
It's that time of the year again…that time when you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and decide how you want your life to be in the new year. We call this a New Year’s resolution. Now I ask you, have your resolutions ever really worked? We keep on rising to the challenge of resolutions and yet in the past, most of them have faded by the middle of January! The reason why they don’t work is in the definition of the word resolution: “a firm decision to do or not to do something.” Resolutions are all about doing because they are made…
How To Be Compassionate With Your Compulsions
My friend, Jane, has a very high pressure job, plus she travels a lot. On a Friday morning recently, she arose feeling stressed and anxious about her weekend trip out-of-town. When she got to work, she had a conversation with one of her co-workers that did not go well. Then, when she got to the airport, she discovered that her plane was delayed for many hours. Jane had a traumatic childhood and has struggled with overeating for much of her life. So what did she do to soothe her anxiety and stress? She ate. Then she got angry and berated…
Exercises to Develop Your Attention Muscles
Stephen Levine, author and spiritual teacher, once told me that focused human attention is as powerful as taking a magnifying glass and putting it right above a leaf with the sun shining through it. Even weak winter sun will start a fire on the leaf. In other words, focused human attention is phenomenally powerful. Focused attention is the ability to have your attention and your immediate experience come together. How do you bring these two things together? It begins with curiosity. Curiosity is becoming interested in what is going on right here right now without needing it to be any different…
As Is, I’m Here
During a weekend recently three big challenges came up for me and and I used one of my favorite mantras over and over again, “As Is, I’m Here.” Saying “As Is” reminds you of the willingness to allow yourself to be exactly as you are in this moment. It invites you to let go of struggling with whatever is (your usual mode), so you can move into the place of healing that comes from allowing yourself to be exactly as you are. “I’m Here” reminds you to be keenly attentive to what is, in a way that invites your heart to be open to…
Harry’s Perfect Moment, A Tale of Practical Enlightenment
It was a Monday morning and Harry swung his legs over the side of the bed. He knew something was different, but he had no idea that today he would have a “perfect” moment. Donning his cotton robe, Harry made his way to the kitchen and started his day like he always did by preparing breakfast for his wife and two young sons. He got out the usual supplies – knife, cutting board, bowl and fruit – and laid them on the butcher-block center island. Suddenly the morning took a new twist. There was a break in his routine. The…
Welcome Yourself Exactly As You Are
Welcoming means accepting yourself exactly as you are and also accepting life exactly as it unfolds. It is the ability to allow all of it, including all the parts of yourself and your life that you don’t like, and letting it all flow without getting hooked into the stories created by your mind. Welcoming is not trying to make your life any different than it is. Easier said than done, right? I know it's not always easy to welcome and accept life, especially your challenges, because you have been conditioned to continuously judge yourself and others. This is the inner voice…
Do You See What You’re Missing?
My eyesight, or lack thereof, has always taught me lessons. Back in 2008 and in my recent book, From Type A to Type Me: How to Stop “Doing” Life and Start Living It, I shared my experiences of having poor eyesight before receiving my first glasses. I learned a lot about myself through my microscopic view of the world due to my near-sightedness. Then, once I had the right glasses, I began to see the beauty and interconnectedness of the world. Now my eyes are ready to teach me the next lesson. A few years back I received Lasik surgery. For…
How You can Find Healing that Lasts
How would your life change if you trusted that your challenges are a part of your journey home – back to yourself and back to Life – instead of feeling that your challenges are here because you have done something wrong or you are being punished or God fell asleep on the job? What would happen if your illness, your difficult relationship, your demanding boss, your compulsions, and maybe even your troublesome dog were showing up in your life to help you heal? The healing you long for comes when you discover how to play the warmer, warmer/colder, colder game. Remember that…