Winter solstice always carries the symbolism of light dispelling darkness. That image seems particularly comforting right now as we have entered a dark period in which people full of hate and mean intentions have captured the castle. After weeks of mucking around in the darkness, I am ready to embrace the light. I’ve written a … Read more
“We are all connected; to each other biologically; to the earth chemically; and to the universe atomically.” That’s from Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist, author and Director of the Hayden Planetarium in NYC. His explanation is simple and to the point. It might be easy to miss how profound the idea is. For much of human … Read more
Creating a Strategy Having a strategy for mindfulness practice is as important as a technique. Many of the participants in the Mindfulness 101 class that I teach at the Colorado Mental Wellness Network already know about meditation and mindfulness. Many have practiced sporadically. Their challenge is not that they don’t know some basic meditation techniques, … Read more
Spiritual Practice A path, a journey, a long climb to the top of the mountain….all are analogies for spiritual practice. The implication is that we are trying to get somewhere. We start HERE and we get THERE, wherever THERE is. We are moving on a path toward enlightenment, or at the very least a reduction … Read more
Creating Winter Mandalas This moment and this moment and this next moment….that’s what we have. These moments make up our lives. And yet we seem to be wired to be anywhere but in this present moment. Certainly more than at any time in our history, the information on meditation and mindfulness is readily available. But … Read more
Listening & Hearing are Not the Same Thing Hearing is a sensory experience – waves of energy flowing over our eardrums and lighting up our brains. Listening involves some action on our part as we try to decode the incoming message. Mindful listening is deep attentiveness to the moment by moment unfolding of energy and … Read more
. Pattern Language Expands Possibilities What do forest gardens and peer run recovery centers have in common? • Both are innovative ideas • Both are phrases that help us envision new patterns and possibilities As I expand on each one and you’ll see the connections. On forest gardens Forest gardens are also known as food … Read more
The celestial tipping point that is winter solstice happens on Saturday, December 21st (2013) at exactly 10:11 AM Mountain Time. (See other time zones below.) As our home planet journeys around the sun, it tilts on its axis so that those of us living north of the equator are leaning away from the sun. It … Read more
The Magic of NANOWRIMO Nestled neatly between the end of gardening season and the beginning of the holidays is NANOWRIMO, National Novel Writing Month. It is a marathon in which writers challenge themselves to complete 50,000 words in thirty days. This is my second year of writing for NANOWRIMO, and although it makes the month … Read more
The Power of Language Language shapes our perception of the world. Label a plant a medicinal herb or label it a weed and very different images appear in our minds. Label a person as someone in recovery or a person who is mentally ill and again, different images appear that open or shut doors to … Read more
