I was texting yesterday with a friend I met in Sri Lanka. He wrote that on the local news there, they were showing a group of monks walking from Texas to Washington, D.C., carrying signs about peace and mettā, moving step after step along the highway. I pictured their feet on the pavement and thought
As I contemplate the latest news about the the situation in Gaza, I wonder how is meditation in a time of war relevant. As I write this, the world seems even more precarious than last week. It’s difficult for me to write today. It’s as if the sorrow fell overnight like a snowstorm, blocking the
When I think about the Israel-Hamas war, I struggle for some time, before finally sighing to myself hello darkness my old friend. The other day I came across a very short poem by the 11th century Japanese woman poet Izumi Shikibu, and it struck a chord: Although the windblows terribly here,the moonlight also leaksbetween the
Although I try to not address too many political issues on this blog, for reasons I hope to make clear if you choose to read this post, the coup in Burma the morning of February 1 is worthy of some discussion. The current extraordinary interest in mindfulness, both as a systematic approach to meditation
Tears just flowed from my face when I heard Amanda Gorman, at only 22 years old, stride up to the microphone in front of an anxious worldwide audience and recite her moving poem The Hill We Climb during the inauguration. I have wept often in my 64 years, and yesterday’s weeping is staying with me
Realize that for many our negativity bias is on steroids right now, and that’s OK. Notice the lovely things that happen in your day. Just let these short sweet moments in, and nurture your resilience. I’ve always loved the way Japanese poets influenced by the Jodo Shinshu tradition express their wisdom in verse. Here
We bring a gentle, loving awareness to this body. We treat it softly, and with respect. It knows; our body feels respected. One little peek at my phone yesterday and bam, my screen screamed out: “Trump freaks out after the Midterms and ousts Sessions.” I think we are all freaking out just a little too
The prominent Buddhist teacher, author, and activist, Joan Halifax, on the day of this shooting tweeted “I want to live in a country that loves its children more than its guns.” I would like to wish everyone a thoughtful International Woman’s Day (today, March 8, 2018). Here in the USA, the #MeToo and the Time’s
It’s been a year now since Trump was elected president. No matter what your party affiliation, or non-affiliation, this year-old administration has caused many to feel trepidation and uncertainty about the future. In his farewell address to the nation last year, Barack Obama said “at our core we will be OK.” Driving home from work
As a leader and host of a mindfulness meditation group meeting weekly now for 19 years, I can tell you what you already know – people are wigging out. Writing recently about the inauguration on the Lion’s Roar site, Susan Piver says we suffer because we are continuously “biting the hook” of our habitual reactions,