6/9/26 ...Reflections on Balance, Illumination, and the Summer Solstice As we approach the halfway point of the year and move toward the Summer Solstice, the season of greatest light—I’ve been reflecting on illumination and balance. Social media, the news, and our collective conversations seem to be shining a light on what was once hidden, bringing both immense challenges and potential solutions into clearer view. At the same time, life has called me outward in new ways. May

5/11/26 The Earth offers a kind of stability that allows us to soften and surrender the weight of what is no longer useful. She gives us a place where it is safe to lay down the heaviness of being human-the striving, the tension, the excess activity of our minds and lives. Nature itself becomes a quiet teaching in letting go. When we sit outside with soft, receptive eyes, the aperture of perception widens. Through this wider lens, we begin to notice the natural cycles of life

4/7/26 I dragged myself to the gym the other morning, feeling tired, a bit dull and listless. At the co-housing community where I live, the gym faces west, with a sweeping mountain view just beyond the courtyard. As I walked in, the weight room was calling me. Yet I found myself drifting toward the windows—some small act of conscious procrastination. I glanced out into the courtyard and stopped. There, just below, was the memorial shrine created for Loretta, a longtime member

3/10/26 “We are always in transition. If you can just relax with that, you’ll have no problem.” — Lakota elder A Zen Buddhist walks up to a hot dog vendor in New York and says,“Make me one with everything.” The vendor hands him the hot dog and says, “That will be ten dollars.” The Buddhist gives him a twenty. The vendor puts it in the drawer and closes it. The Buddhist asks, “Where’s my change?” The vendor replies, “Change must come from within.” And speaking of change… We ju

02//9/26 It’s almost mid-February, and by now there’s usually something striking a strong chord in my heart to write about. Several themes have floated through. A few lines scribbled here and there. I even considered writing about self-love. But every time I tried, I felt a subtle pushing — like I was trying to make something happen. And lately, that just doesn’t work. Something in me has softened… or maybe died… to forcing life, to pushing my agenda onto whatever moment is h

Photo on Unsplash by Amanda Sofia Pellenz 1/15/26 One of my dear friends has an uncanny knack for sending me comedy clips at exactly the moments I need them most. My sister does this too. And then there’s one of my neighbors—someone I walk with early in the morning once or twice a week. During these walk-and-talks, we sometimes share what’s currently challenging us in life… and more often than not, we end up laughing our asses off at how ridiculous the mind can be—making pro

7 minute guided meditation and End of year journal prompts

photo by Marina Vitale Unsplash 12/18/25 Turn your gaze in another direction, and the whole world turns— possibly into something exceptional, or perhaps something unbearable. I look at a friend and experience worlds upon worlds. My experience of them is uniquely my own, shaped by the lens I’m looking through in that moment. Am I seeing their beauty, or their perceived weaknesses and the differences between us? Is my vision rose-colored,clear,or muddy? What I am looking at i

11/22/25 It’s Thanksgiving week, and I’m grateful for this collective invitation toward gratitude that seems to fill the air (at least here in the U.S.). Attending to appreciation has a way of softening this heart in quiet, almost miraculous ways. As I searched for inspiration for this month’s writing, I came across a timeless quote by Meister Eckhart: “If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.” Each time I encounter this quote,

10/9/25: “ Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are .”
— Chinese Proverb Last month, while on a silent retreat,...

9/14/25 I asked you a question and you said, "I DON'T KNOW." and in your blazing, awake eyes I saw the abyss— the return of the mind’s...

8/5/25 Who Are You, Really? “Who’s having a shitty day?” That’s how the yoga teacher greeted our class the other week. Before my mind...

7/10/25: Things become invisible in familiar spaces This morning, I finally cleaned out the corner of my patio. It had been home to a few...

6/18/25 Blazing fire of life, Life-affirming wonder, Dazzling, silent radiance— Revealing, illuminating. Grower of plants and creatures,...

sunrise at summer solstice last year 6/18/25 Somehow, summer is here. How did that happen? Wasn’t it just winter... like, last week? Time...

photo by Raimand Klavins on Unsplash Whispers of the Wind Have you ever stood beneath a sky torn open, facing into a wind too sharp, too...

photo from Logan Voss on Unsplash 4/7/25 Rolling like waves on stormy—yet oddly graceful—seas, there I was…wrestling with Trump. In a...

photo by Henry Be on Unsplash Years ago, I spent a weekend with one of the elders I had trained and studied with. During that time, she...

photo on Unsplash by Ahmad Odeh 2/3/25 I usually attend some kind of dance event a few times a month. The other morning, I walked into...

Pacific Palisades fire January 2025 1/14/24: I lived in the LA area for a little over 13 years, so hearing about the fires hit me hard....