Author Archives: Musings

Post No.11—October 28, 2014 It isn’t the content of our movie that needs our attention, it’s the projector. It isn’t the current story line that’s the root of our pain; it’s our propensity to be bothered in the first place. -Pema Chodron We know what feel like to have our buttons pushed. If we haveContinue reading “Getting hooked!”

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower. -Albert Camus At this time of year, I am always reminded of the Greek myth of Persephone, the goddess who was kidnapped by Hades and spent half the year with him in the Underworld and half the year on earth with her mother Demeter,Continue reading “The Newness of Autumn”

Live well enough to horrify a few and inspire many -Clarissa Pinkola Estes One of the simplest definitions of what it means to live well is found, I believe, in Joseph Campbell’s invitation to “follow your bliss”.   This means to live an authentic life, the life you were meant to live, to pursue that whichContinue reading “To Live Well”

When we are addicted we can never get enough of the thing we crave and our concept of nourishment can contract into a survival-based longing for more, coupled with a primal experience of not enough. -author Christine Caldwell Society condemns most addictions: drugs, alcohol, food, cigarettes. But what about addiction to something society nominally encourages,Continue reading “Addiction to Perfection”

Sixteen years ago, I was pregnant with my first child. As an anxious mother-to-be, I wanted to know everything I could about pregnancy, birth and motherhood. I inquired about pre-natal classes. My doctor suggested I attend Yvonne Moore’s pre-natal yoga classes. I learned so much from Yvonne, who became not just my yoga teacher, mentorContinue reading “Breath is Life!”

When encountering emotional vampires, see what you can learn…You can simply feel tortured, resentful, and impotent. Or, as I try to do, ask yourself, “How can this interchange help me grow?” -Judith Orloff Emotional vampires are everywhere: in your family, at work, amongst friends and acquaintances, and they can easily sap you of your energyContinue reading “Emotional Vampires”

Healthy, resilient boundaries feed upon themselves, so that the more vibrant they are, the more they develop…once you become strong in your boundaries, they become more porous; love and caring flow more easily between yourself and others. -Philip Moffitt, “Setting Personal Boundaries” Many of us struggle with establishing and honoring our boundaries. Raising the subjectContinue reading “Boundaries”

Thought Experiment: a test in which one imagines the practical outcome of a hypothesis when physical evidence may not be available. -Collins American Dictionary  While flying recently, I met a Chemistry graduate student who was on her way back home after attending a conference. She eagerly shared her ideas about wave theory and its practicalContinue reading “Thought Experiment”

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. -Anais Nin We tell ourselves that playing it safe involves very little risk. The known, however frustrating, is at least familiar. We are well acquainted with the challenges of our jobs, marriagesContinue reading “The Bud or the Blossom?”

Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it. -Rumi   We live in a culture of perfectionism. We want to shed unwanted pounds, find the perfect mate, complete all the tasks on our to do list, and maybeContinue reading “Removing Obstacles”