

It’s a little bit funny
Last month's blog posts and newsletter were about dealing with change. A reader suggested that I missed one important tactic: finding humor in the situation. Just this morning, participants in a Creative Journaling class agreed that one sign that they are feeling...

B. Alan Wallace on compassion, grief, and the ideal response to adversity
“Grief,” writes B. Alan Wallace in The Four Immeasurables: Practices to Open the Heart, “is the near enemy of compassion.” Compassion, in Wallace’s view, is the desire that another be free from suffering. It holds the vision that such freedom is possible. In Buddhist...

surfing through change
I know nothing about surfing. I’ve only seen it on rare occasions (not much surfing in southern Minnesota.) I’ve never tried it. But I imagine… Looking out at a rolling ocean. Smelling salt air. Grabbing a well-waxed board and paddling out. Watching the water. Feeling...

nothing lasts – the truth of impermanence
One of the basic tenants of Buddhism is impermanence: nothing lasts. Everything arises abides, and dissolves. “Impermanence is not only to be overcome and endured,” writes Buddhist teacher Norman Fischer,. “It is also to be lived and appreciated.” It’s a simple notion...

evolution of a kind promise
It’s not often that you experience something life-changing. Ten years ago, I participated in an online class taught by Jan Lundy called “for Buddha Chickies with Health Challenges.” We learned some meditation techniques and basic Buddhist principles that are useful...

on the hunt for varieties of strengths
I start my day with a loving kindness meditation. “May you be safe. May you be strong. May you live with joy. May you be peaceful and it at ease.” I wish these things for myself, my loved ones, strangers, enemies, and all beings. I learned this meditation technique...
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