May you be blessed in the holy names of thoseWho, without you knowing it,Help to carry and lighten your pain. May you know serenityWhen you are calledTo enter the house of suffering. May a window of light always surprise you. May you be granted the wisdomTo avoid false resistance;When suffering knocks on the door of…
This week I was reminded by my 4-year-old grandson about preference, pleasant events and being present in my mindfulness practice. We went to a wildlife park for the day. We saw many beautiful birds of prey. When asked which his favourite bird was, without any hesitation, he said he liked pigeons the best. His reason? …
On a recent retreat a well-intentioned participant informed me that my drive system was overactive. She was referring to the three-circle model of Prof. Paul Gilbert which is part of our Level 2 Compassion training. This model postulates three psychological systems: a threat system, which triggers the fight, flight, freeze response when we feel threatened;…
Over the last 4 weeks I have been on the ‘road’. From my home, north of London I have travelled to Yorkshire twice, Scotland twice, Manchester twice, Sweden, Northumberland and Spain. I’ve slept in 10 different beds, taken 4 flights and 20 trains. I’ve experienced extremes of temperature and weather from -14 and thick snow…
It is very early in the morning and I am struggling to sleep. I woke up with feelings of fear and overwhelm and have spent the last hour or so lying in bed practicing. Part of me wishes the feelings would go away and part of me is curious about what can be learned. I…
We think we get over things.We don’t get over things.Or say, we get over the measlesbut not a broken heart.We need to make that distinction.The things that become part of our experiencenever become less a part of our experience.How can I say it?The way to “get over” a life is to die.Short of that, you…
I have found myself travelling a lot over this past few weeks. Some of my journeys have been challenging, in various ways. During these challenging times I have been very grateful for my mindfulness practice. Interesting I have found that my practice has not only for my own wellbeing but, inadvertently, benefited others too. In…
Some weeks my blog just falls out of my mind, through my finger tips and onto the paper. Other weeks, it is a bit more tricky and this week is one of them.
Planes, trains and automobiles