Musings from a curious soul navigating inner and outer worlds.
I’ve developed a theory about stuff and things. Art, books, kitchen items, clothes, spiritual relics, furniture, lamps, cool mirrors from Liberace’s estate—you name it. Having these items is more than just having a thing.…
Read the full piece
Years ago, I created a product called Consciousness in a Can. It was a collection of thought, laughter and conversation-provoking quotations. There's a story about how it went from being an idea in my mind to an actual product in stores, but that's not what I'm writing about.…
Read the full piece
Today, I went to the Portland Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education to see an installation called The Burned Piano Project: Creating Music Amidst The Noise of Hate. The story, the artwork and the performance significantly moved me.…
Read the full piece
Let’s make a bet. I bet I can ask you one question that will activate a spark in you and call you to your path; as a honey jar calls to Winnie the Pooh, you will have no choice but to answer. I know this because once this error of thinking is illuminated, grace can enter, and life flows.…
Read the full piece
Ever since I was little, I’ve been more interested in the things I can’t see than the things I can see. I remember, as a little kid, clenching my fists and squeezing them real hard with my eyes scrunched and lips pursed, contracting my whole body wanting to connect to something, to know what I…
Read the full piece
We humans are so good at making up stories in our heads about what’s happening, calling them true and then interacting with the story instead of the person or situation at hand. Fifteen years ago, I decided to attend a 10-day silent Vipassana Meditation Retreat at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center. I arrived later than…
Read the full piece
I had a week full of deep work and release, just had chocolate chip cookies for dinner (homemade, of course) and don’t feel like writing much. But I do want to give you this. In the book Frankenstein*, when the monster meets his creator, he persuades the Dr. to listen to his story. He says, talking about…
Read the full piece
I recently picked up Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, undeniably a classic tome. I learned about the author in a wisdom tradition lecture series I attended for six years. I saw the movie and watched a documentary about her life, but I have not read the book until now. Reading it tickles me so. I feel connected…
Read the full piece
Ever said a part of me feels like this, but another part feels like that? You’re not kidding! We all have different parts of ourselves that live inside us. When you recognize that every part of you is trying to protect you from feeling your wounds, you start having an appreciation for them. All of them –…
Read the full piece
I’m taking a workshop about IFS, Internal Family Systems. It’s a system for healing trauma based on the parts that live within. Who hasn’t said, “A part of me feels this way and a part of me feels differently? Well, why not give those parts full voice? They have more influence on your state of…
Read the full piece
You are beautiful. You are talented. You’ve got it going on, sisters and brothers. You are electric. You are the shit. You are da bomb. Now go out there and light the world on fire. Like lightning. And, if you’re not feeling it, and want some help aligning to all your inherent goodness. Give me a shout. Because…
Read the full piece
I’ve noticed something in my body since my brother suddenly died three months ago, shocking me and others close to him. I still can’t believe it. One day he was here; the next, he was not here. There was no warning. He is not here. I miss him very much. Ever since, when I think…
Read the full piece
When was the last time you asked yourself how you are? How are you Self? What do you need? What can I do to make your life easier? Don’t accept, “I’m fine” as an answer. Stay with yourself a little longer. Check-in. See what you want, what you need. You might find out you really need…
Read the full piece
When I was a little girl, I had a favorite dress. It was black velvet and had a white vine of leaves down the left side. I LOVED that dress. When I wore it, I felt happy. Here’s a picture of me in 2nd grade wearing it for the class photo. See if you can…
Read the full piece
About a year and a half ago, I relaunched my coaching business calling it Ripples & Echoes of You. I was uncomfortable about so many things, including calling myself a life coach (life coach? I mean, puh-leeze), putting myself out there, creating a website, marketing, attracting clients, and taking myself seriously. The list goes on,…
Read the full piece
Why is it so difficult to figure out what’s wrong with a person? A beautiful illustration of this point is on my refrigerator. It’s a cartoon of a man sitting on an examining table in a doctor’s office. There’s a knife sticking out of his back. The doctor looks at him and says, “Hmm…you say…
Read the full piece
I’ve been studying Compassionate Inquiry, an approach founded by Dr. Gabor Maté and put together by Sat Dharam Kaur for helping clients recognize belief systems that do not serve them, identify the difference between feelings and perceptions and heal trauma. It’s important to discern between perceptions and feelings because perceptions can be explored, altering your…
Read the full piece
It happens every day, more than once. It happened just before I began writing this, and it will happen before I’m finished. Distraction. Jumping back and forth between this and that, making tea, running to the store, taking a victory lap because I wrote a good sentence. I need some water. Calling a friend instead…
Read the full piece
You might have noticed you didn’t find The Weekly Journal in your inbox for the past two Mondays. Two weeks ago was my birthday and I took a week off. Last week, there was a tragedy in my life; my brother died suddenly of an undiagnosed infection. One day he was here. The next day,…
Read the full piece
Be with those who help your being. Don’t sit with indifferent people, whose breath comes cold out of their mouths. Not these visible forms, your work is deeper. A chunk of dirt thrown in the air breaks to pieces. If you don’t try to fly, and so break yourself apart, you will be broken open…
Read the full piece
Golden Ponds has four lakes, a river, miles of paths to walk on – both dirt and cemented- and is a popular place. Today the parking lot is full. It’s no surprise — it’s a balmy 45° after a week of temperatures close to zero — and everyone is enjoying the warmer weather. You could…
Read the full piece
I love the tarot card in the photo of the week*. The first time I drew it, I was in awe of its beauty and sentiment. Patience demonstrated by the cycles of the moon and the nine months it takes to be born. Two phenomenons that cannot be sped along by willpower, desire or throwing…
Read the full piece
It’s Valentine’s Day. Since today’s festive event focuses on love, and what the world needs now is love, sweet love, I thought this week’s reflection could talk about one kind of eros, romance. With over 323 million people on dating apps in 2021 and projected revenue by 2025 to be 5.71 billion, there sure a…
Read the full piece
We all have colorful histories full of life experiences that made us who we are. They include times we treasure as well as difficult, traumatic events; before and after moments – one minute life is one way and the next it will not be the same again. Even change for the better can be difficult.…
Read the full piece
No matter how beneficial, the emotion of guilt is uncomfortable. For instance, when you’ve done something you wish you hadn’t or said something you wish you didn’t or when you didn’t do or say something you wish you had. The feeling of guilt rises within and it’s everything you can do to stay in your…
Read the full piece
I couldn’t figure out what to write about this week. I was going to write about positive guilt, but I’m going to save that for next week and just tell you a couple of stories. Why? Because sometimes, I get tired of talking about trauma, contemplating how to have a better life or hearing about…
Read the full piece
Yesterday, through the training I’m taking with Gabor Mate, I participated in an experiential workshop in something called Hakomi. Hakomi is a somatic, mindfulness-based approach to psychotherapy. We didn’t talk much about the modality, and I still don’t know a lot about it — but after experiencing the approach, I’m interested in learning more. I…
Read the full piece
Ever since I was eleven years old, I haven’t understood all the hoo-ha about NYE and The New Year. That was the first time I remember being excited about staying up late, watching the ball drop, and the potential of not only a new day but A NEW YEAR! The way it was presented, I…
Read the full piece
I wish you a new year filled with curiosity. When something works, get curious. When something doesn’t work, get curious. When you feel gratitude not prefaced with, I should feel grateful for (fill in the blank), get curious. Authentic gratitude bubbles up from within and is visceral*. Get curious when you feel happy, sad, mad,…
Read the full piece
In recent years the concept of forgiveness has been all the rage. Sometimes it seems like a buzzword that equates to arriving at a holy place. When friends advise about difficult relations with others, the first question often is, can you forgive them? Say yes, and you’ll hear heavenly trumpets. Is something wrong with you…
Read the full piece
I’m a big advocate of taking time off from life, stepping away from daily routines, responsibilities and chores, and giving yourself the space for an out-breath. I’m not talking about a long vacation with all its planning and expense. I’m referring to taking a day or two and jumping off of the merry-go-round that constitutes…
Read the full piece
The following is a contemplation on love. Its purpose is to inquire about the subject, identify internal beliefs, and spark deeper thoughts about a familiar and complex topic. Love. The word is bandied about as if there’s an accepted definition that reigns glory over the landscape. Singers croon about it, preachers preach about it, advertisers…
Read the full piece
I’m not into positive psychology or sugar-coating uncomfortable emotions with pretty words. Recognizing and getting to the root of feelings, facing discomfort, and integrating those difficult places are more interesting. Facing yourself is healing not just emotionally but mentally and physically as well. Getting curious about how you operate, what you believe, why you believe…
Read the full piece
I don’t know if it’s ADD or ADHD or what set of initials it would be called, but sometimes I want to do ten things simultaneously. When this happens, I start one thing, jump to another, stop doing any of it, have a drink of water and consider what I would like to watch on…
Read the full piece
I call it Daily Yoga because it’s a practice. It doesn’t involve twisting your body into shapes on a mat, sitting in an incense-filled room saying namaste or going anywhere special to partake. You do it whenever, wherever, and all it requires is paying attention to your body or internal dialogue. Ah, but it’s called…
Read the full piece
Gabor Maté attributes Buddha when he offers the teaching, “Your mind creates the world.” It’s a deep contemplation. Words and actions mean one thing to one person; and different things to others — the recipient’s responses or reactions can run the gamut. Why? Your mind creates the world says that interpretations of happenings outside of…
Read the full piece
This past couple of weeks, I’ve recognized how easy it is not to take responsibility for feelings or actions that need to be taken and how that can lead to blame and passive-aggressive behavior. Perhaps this story will help you recognize within yourself ways in which some of your own behavior leads you away from…
Read the full piece
The distinction made between a good feeling and a bad feeling is a curiosity to me. I’m not talking about physical pain. I’m talking about feelings. The ever-so stealth inner landscape that discreetly directs external behaviors. What determines a feeling being one or the other? At first, you might say, well, that’s easy to answer.…
Read the full piece
These days more and more of us feel the call for demonstrating authenticity in our lives, myself included. What does that mean, and how did we lose it in the first place? Is it possible for us to be anything but who we are? It seems so. Human beings have feelings, the desire to fit…
Read the full piece
Long but worth the read! This piece is written by OSHO When a mood against someone or for someone arises, do not place it on the person in question, but remain centered. If hate arises for someone or against someone, or love arises for someone, what do we do? We project it on the person.…
Read the full piece
We’ve all heard “you only get what you give” crooned in song lyrics and tossed about in new age seminars sailing through the lips of “gurus,” using guilt-inducing finger-pointing tactics as the path to enlightenment. I say poppycock. Why do I take issue with the sentiment? Three reasons. 1) People often get more than they…
Read the full piece
Every place you go these days, people offer you pills, therapies, systems, exercises, eating plans, brain scans, and trips to the Moon to help you change your life. In a recent Internet search for change your life(5 seconds ago), 1,720,000,000 websites came up. Just 3 hours later 2,160,000,000 came up; just 5 hours later, 4,150,000,000.…
Read the full piece
I recently listened to a two-part presentation by Michael Meade called Thresholds of Change. Part one is called Standing on the Threshold. He believes we are all collectively standing on a threshold, individually, within our communities, and culturally worldwide. I agree with him. Living in the world has changed drastically over the past couple of years. As…
Read the full piece
This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness,some momentary awareness comesas an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all!Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,who violently sweep your houseempty of its furniture,still, treat each guest honorably.He may be clearing you outfor some new delight. The…
Read the full piece
When my cat Einstein died, I was devastated. He was a 20-pound, lovable, ornery beast who knew what he wanted and when he wanted it. He was a cat with chutzpah. I once saw him being chased by a dog; it was as if he suddenly remembered he had claws. He slid to a grinding…
Read the full piece
How many times have you had an overblown reaction to something and wondered why your emotions got so out of control? Usually, if not every time, it’s because of something called the 90/10 rule. 90% of the upset is responding to unresolved issues from the past. 10% is fueled by the moment. Parts of ourselves…
Read the full piece