Mindfulness and the City

On Meditation & Change

Life happens whether we are still or not. We can actively participate in some aspect of the world or stay still. Wisdom comes from both. Sometimes, our life experience is decided for us through illness, trauma or circumstances. Meditation is one way to get acquainted with the wisdom inherent in stillness by choice of our […]

Look Around You

“The mind is always seeking zones of safety, and these zones of safety are continuously falling apart. The opposite is when all the walls fall down, the cocoon disappears and we are totally open to whatever happens. That’s what stirs us and inspires us: leaping, being thrown out of the nest, going through the initiation, […]

You are my teacher, you are my student

All life and learning is an energy of giving and receiving. We encounter others on our path to exchange this life force. In an instant, we recognize ourselves in the other; a giving reflection of a world we need to see. This is our world that we see, a creation of our thoughts and our […]

What is the point? From Self to Others

I woke up this morning thinking, “Why?” and “What is the point?” It is not new, this interrogation into the purpose of life. The well known German-Austrian psychiatrist, Viktor Frankl, posits that meaning comes from three sources: 1) loving a person 2) purposeful work/ project 3) surviving adverse conditions with dignity. Each of these things […]

Beginner’s Mind

Spring cleaning and curiosity. Tree buds thicken. Seeds planted; harvest mind. Less hope, more giving. A playful attitude emerging.

Tree of Refuge

Anchored in my seat, feeding offthe warm, succulent energy of the cosmosBreathing in sun, breathing out gentlenessWatering deep soil with rain and tormented sea Eyes closed spark a fireLight appears and waterfalls, then moistA wide circle forms with all its nutrientspassing through the immaterial Pressure risesAbdomen moves like a babyslipping into drowsy wakefulnessMilk curdles on […]

Sustenance: The Artist Way

“WHAT NEXT? My ‘future’ is the darkest thing in the world to me, but as there still remains a great deal for me to do, I suppose I ought rather to think of doing this than of my future, and leave the rest to THEE and the gods.” ~Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spake Zarathustra: A book […]

How Do We Return to Society?

In Zen training we start with The Search for Ox, the Ox being our true nature. With diligent practice over time, we move through stages that lead to an enlightened return. Examining the evolution of Zen training is essential when we think about how a commitment to mindfulness meditation can positively influence society and encourage […]

Seeing the Forest

While the stock market tumults, I study things up close like the black and orange caterpillar that crosses my path. How does a caterpillar survive this uneven terrain I wonder? The war and torture in Ukraine continue while I step out firmly on wet soil. I listen to the tall pines sway and watch the […]