When my husband and I began dating, we had tremendous hunger to know who the other was. Daytime was an irritating obstacle to be gotten through until we could hold each other at night, when we would make love, certainly, but mainly we looked at each other. Listened. Smelled. Tasted. Touched. He was a stranger, but I knew him. And... READ MORE
I was talking to my friend Michael Carroll today. We started discussing the nature of heartbreak. Here’s what he said. Check this riff: The defining aspect of our nature is vulnerability. Vulnerability is the precondition for compassion. The foundation of vulnerability is uncertainty. The seed of the open mind is tenderness…this is what allows us to fall in love, cherish... READ MORE
Consistency is more important than duration (i.e. 10 minutes a day is better than an hour a week) I’m never going to get it right. If I have an itch, I can scratch it. I don’t have to feel like doing it to do it. If I’m all fidgety and jumpy, it’s okay. My meditation will be fidgety and jumpy... READ MORE
I’m always tinkering with mine. Found this article on writer’s rooms on the Guardian website. I sort of can’t stop staring at it. Here’s what my office looks like currently. I LOVE to stare at pictures of other people’s workspaces. Hint, hint.
Who knew there was such a thing as Books for a Better Life! Suddenly I love them.
Would a Buddhist enjoy a job as a waitress? How would a Buddhist approach a job as a waitress? Since I have been seeking enlightenment, and have room to grow, I believe I know the answers. Let’s say I was a fully enlightened Buddha. I would enjoy a job as a waitress. I would not think about what the job... READ MORE
Dancing in the Dark Bruce Springsteen dancing-in-the-dark.mp3 I was sitting outside the Tam O’Shanter Lounge in my cab, waiting for last call to see who might stumble out too drunk to drive. Cabbie was one of my first post-high school jobs and the best career alternative I could think of at the time. It was late August, about a zillion... READ MORE
Blue Skies The Allman Brothers blue-skies.mp3 My boyfriend and I were lying on the floor listening to music, smoking pot, waiting for the pizza delivery guy. I think I was about 18 years old. He wanted me to listen to “Blue Skies” by the Allman Brothers. Sure, I thought. Whatever. I like music. He cued it up and when it... READ MORE
A wonderful, non-denominational piece by Chris Bynum about different ways to connect with silence. What a daring thing to write about anywhere, but especially in the New Orleans daily paper. I was interviewed for it and am quoted at the end.
Some months ago, Beliefnet taped me giving a few short (5 mins) talks on various topics: Becoming Fearless Loving Yourself Spiritual Discipline Healing a Broken Heart What is Meditation?
Yesterday, Duncan and I were talking about what qualified a song as melancholy. Melancholy is not quite sadness. It seems to also include an element of longing, even of sweetness. As an enneagram 4, I feel eminently qualified to compose a melancholy playlist. (For more about the enneagram–and my obsessive interest in it, click here.) And so I did, and... READ MORE
What I was told when I e-mailed a friend with a question about some reading he suggested: Yes, you understand the reading instructions clearly. Go slow, absorb, contemplate, be confused, discover enlightenment. Pretty much applicable in all situations.
Get a new meditation from me every Monday morning