As I write this, another holiday season is passing into memory while the current year expires and a new one waits to be born. With the Winter Solstice just past, the days are once again lengthening even as they turn colder in the long months before the green pulse of spring quickens and growth returns to the land. This particular…
It is no accident that “love the work” is the first practice of a mindful leader. The work of mindfulness practice begins with love, with deep caring. Love is where body, mind, and heart come together. Love is more than an idea and more than a feeling. “Love the work” is an instruction that is surprisingly practical; it can help…
The trail through the snow was easy enough to follow at night, without a flashlight to show the way. Pausing occasionally, I’d wait until my eyes could discern the subtly darker shadow that snaked through a stand of fir and pine: a trail carved by my boots and supplemented by occasional moose, maybe elk or coyote. On the blackest nights,…
They say that every repetition of every one of these Names (Divine Names) is a seed that we plant in our life stream. Sri Ramakrishna, who was a great Indian saint in the 1800’s, talked about how this practice of the repetition of the Name works. He said that every Name is a seed, and just like a little tiny…
Last month, I attended the second annual End Well Symposium in San Francisco–a multidisciplinary event focused on reframing end-of-life care and conversations through the lens of design, health care, language, spirit, community activism, and policy. I caught up with founder Shoshana Ungerleider just before the conference to explore these themes and the long-term outlook of how to live well through…
Blackness, darkness, emptiness–this time of year, where we are at the apex of the slumbering sunlight, gives us permission to enter the realm of soul and emotion. It is time for a cyclical death. Not too long ago, I chose to forego the winter holiday celebrations with friends and family each year, and instead, hibernate. It was a deliberate space…
If we had the technology to create a 3D map of what in our environment draws our attention–after getting over the initial mortification–we’d all be alarmed by how much energy goes towards our devices. Like a black hole for awareness, they have a certain gravitational pull. The amount of times I’ve found myself with my unlocked phone in hand and…
“And so, kids, if you don’t find this awesome new game under the tree you’ve really got to ask yourselves what you’re doing there.” – New Yorker Cartoon Take a moment to reflect on what “the holidays” mean to you–whatever ones you celebrate and all the other parties that crop up this time of year. Or what they could mean,…