Sangha and The Superbowl
“Only the unexpected is real.” Nisargadatta Maharaj I have a dear friend who lives in California. I practice with her and another woman on Skype, every week. We meet for the purpose of deep spiritual practice-this is our mutual intention. Last week she told us about a remarkable encounter that happened for her: she discovered sangha at a super bowl party. She had a conversation with two men at this party that evolved into a space of such deep love, caring, and respect that she was no longer...
Read MoreWhere Our True Life Begins
Many years ago, when I was living in the Himalayas, a beautiful young woman named Pingala would come and wash my dishes every morning. She sang as she washed–it was one of the loveliest parts of my day, hearing the clattering of dishes down below my house, mixed with her chirping little songs, as she lit the fire to heat up the water. She washed my dishes for so many years that she began to feel like part of our family. One day I dropped a cup on the floor and it broke into about fifteen...
Read MoreLifeletter #198: Grounding Down Into Our Real Power
“We are coming down to earth, we will not arrive intact.” -Bayo Akomolafe I find it very interesting that being a coach does not always mean that I encourage people to feel “I can.” This is not what real empowerment is. Our true power springs from a deeper place. It comes from our humility, and the courage we find to face our shadows and our limitations, as well as our gifts and our brilliance. When a client says to me, “I can’t do this by myself,” I feel my heart breathe a...
Read MoreLifeletter #197: Become a Lake
“Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes.” –Walt Whitman, “Song of Myself” Sometimes, when I am working with a client, I simply invite them to step into their future self. I ask them to just move their body a few small steps forward into a new space, in which they can tap directly into the energy of who they will be in the future, when they have evolved beyond where they are now. This is not a mental exercise-it has...
Read MoreLifeletter #196: Occupy The Body~the joy of landing here on earth
If to say it once And once only, then still To say: Yes. Now Only the single syllable– That is the beloved, That is the world. –Gregory Orr, How Beautiful the Beloved Having lived for fifteen years in a small mountain town in the wilds of British Columbia, and before that for twenty three years in the Himalayas, there was one formidable challenge, connected with postmodern urban life that I managed to escape until now: parking! Twice yesterday I was downtown, cruising around in...
Read MoreLifeletter #195: The Ultimate Bubble
“Chaos should be regarded as extremely good news.” (Chogyam Trungpa) As we enter the New Year, Kali, the black goddess of destruction and renewal is dancing wildly in the world. She’s really not that elegant–no-one seems to have taught her any manners. She’s not the blue-eyed goddess we’ve been hoping for. She’s more like the ugly fairy godmother in Sleeping Beauty, the very last one you would ever invite to the party. But she’s here now–looks...
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