This past weekend was set aside for putting up the Christmas tree. I have all sorts of wonderful childhood memories of decorating the tree with my family. My mother would make snacks and hors d’oeuvres and there would be carols playing and everything seemed perfect. Although, I am beginning to think I may have had…
A few days ago, I was golfing with a friend in the glorious Autumnal sunshine. Conditions were right for a relaxed afternoon of good conversation, mindful attention on not only the ball but also on the stunning park like setting and some nourishing fun. The two of us were hitting the ball well and pleasantly…
I have been working a lot with acceptance lately. From a professional standpoint, the members at the weekly sit requested a session with the practice of RAIN, or the meditation on acceptance created by Tara Brach, then I modeled the RAIN practice when I was teaching on the MBLC Teaching Skills retreat and I will…
As I mentioned last week, I am currently at my cabin in the north of Canada; moreover, I have been sharing space with a lot of people in a small house. My cabin is an 800 square foot wooden structure with three bedrooms, 4 teenagers, a set of grandparents, my brother and myself. Things are,…
As the holiday season is approaching, a friend and I were talking about gift giving and of the politics that can surround the purchasing of presents. One observation that we made was the need in others, and ourselves from time to time, to reciprocate. And not only to reciprocate but to make sure that we…
Recently on my Facebook feed, one of those beautifully scripted nuggets of prophetic wisdom came through and caught my attention: Practice the Pause Oh, the pause… the pause has helped me out in so many instances. I don’t always remember the pause, but when I do I am grateful for it. So, what is this…
It’s that time of year again, the landscape is slowly turning, colours are changing and there is a chill in the air most mornings that sometimes lasts all day. The last cling of Summer is slowly giving way to a season of quiet rest. And it is in this transitional time of Autumn where we…
I am not sure exactly how they measure these things, but popular belief is that in any given day we have between 60 000- 70 000 thoughts (Salla, 2000; Trieschmann, 2001; Williams 2014). That is a lot of thought energy flowing in and out, enticing us to engage, to move away from what is actually…
Last week I was at Samye Ling teaching the first Compassion Based Living Course (CBLC) teaching skills retreat. So we now have 21 Compassion teachers trained to teach the course, ready to share the transformative power of Compassion, which is wonderful. During the retreat we work in groups with each person delivering part of the…