The wanting mind. The craving mind. The desiring mind. Call it what you will- we all have one and it can get the best of us while we are trying tirelessly to satisfy it. All wisdom texts tell us that we cannot quench or satisfy the craving for sense pleasures. Despite it being part of our human nature to orient toward pleasure and avoid pain, if left untamed, it can be highly destructive to you, …
This past month, I taught the second foundation of Mindfulness in our Tuesday evening Vipassana class. I invited the group to explore feeling tones as they arose in meditation practice. The Pali word, Vedana, is roughly translated as feeling tones. Feeling tones are not to be confused with an emotion like anger or sadness, but rather refer to the experience of pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral. The Buddha taught that attending to feeling tones allows us to be …
There was no real reason why I had to create a vegetable garden last weekend. There were no plants withering and waiting to be planted, or a plot of garden looking bedraggled, or a special event that required sprucing up the house and garden. No, the “reason” was that my energy was low and when I tuned in to see what, if anything, felt energizing, I felt a little spark to create a vegetable garden. At …
How do can we cope, with equanimity, to a stressful and unexpectedly large change in our life? I’ve had a very slowly progressing health issue for the last 30 years that has been kept under control (I believe) by a pristine lifestyle of plant based whole foods, 4-6x per week exercise, and, for the last 20 years, a daily breath and meditation practice. So when my condition started to progress to the point of affecting …
I recently returned from a road trip to Tennessee where I had the opportunity to participate in the magnificence that is fall leaf peeping. As you can probably imagine, a road trip through Tennessee meant plenty of time in the car. While my husband and I had fun listening to podcasts and catching up with each other, there were also many miles spent in quiet reflection. Outside of the hustle of daily life, I had …
The sharing of life’s ups and downs, as we navigate them skillfully (and sometimes not so skillfully!) is life changing. This excerpt from a poem written by Lynn, an MBSR (Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction) and MSC (Mindful Self-Compassion) graduate, captures the essence of what a Sangha can provide a person on this journey. The Sangha is one part of the threefold refuge in Buddhism, and refers to a community of friends who study, meditate, and participate in retreats to bring about and maintain …
While doing a walking meditation in the woods of Gainesville this past winter, I connected to the trees around me. Pausing to take in the beauty, strength, and resilience of these living creatures inspired me to do my part in helping to preserve them. I have been called a “tree hugger” on many occasions, yet I do not believe I deserve that level of admiration. What I can own is the desire to preserve and …
You would never invite a thief into your house, so why would you invite joy thief into your mind? Unfortunately, we find that uninvited guests may arrive on a daily basis, requiring us to use discernment as we learn to respond wisely. Discernment starts with mindful awareness that thoughts are simply activities of the mind that come and go regularly. But what if they don’t seem to go? Some move in, set up shop, and work away in the …
Is there anyone who doesn’t have a bucket-load of information about what being “fit” means? It’s everywhere! We are given “fitness guru” suggestions on billboards, TV, radio, magazines, the web and anywhere information is being streamed. Fitness has become such an American obsession that it has begun to do real damage. It is painfully evident that many in this country are struggling to achieve and maintain what I’ll call “inner fitness.” When stripped of the toxic body-perfection messaging, and …
Seeing is not limited to the eyes. When I truly ”see” another person, it requires the act of seeing with the entire body, mind, and spirit. There is nothing more moving than to catch a glimpse of a person’s inner being of light; it is probably the closest thing to seeing God. For the past 20 years, mindfulness training and practice has been a path to strengthening this gift of “seeing”. At first, it was my …
