And…

I was listening to talks given by graduating seniors at a local university. One young man’s reflections stood out for me. They reminded me of something I regularly encounter with my clients, individual and organizational. The question, in times of scarcity and competition for power and position, is, what is the antidote to our amnesia about who we are, separate from what we do? Read the rest of this entry »

So many wonderful women reach out to support and guide the development and growth of others. Many choose to be biological moms. Others play roles of aunt, teacher, friend, coach, or mentor. All bring gifts to these roles, not always in the form we might have expected or even thought we wanted or needed. Yet all give of themselves in ways that touch others. Read the rest of this entry »

In the same week as a wonderful and courageous woman was given two weeks to live I tuned into a talk on APM’s On Being about mortality. The speaker voiced a view consistent with a view I have long held about death. He suggested that we might benefit by considering death a developmental stage. The whole show and circumstance of my friend’s impending death caused me to reflect on how we frame or think about life and death.

My first question, consistent with the developmental stage concept, is, “what if life and death are not opposites?” What if death is not the absence of life? What if our current response to death is more of a reflection of the limitations of our human mind and senses? In other words, is it because we cannot see or feel a person who has died that we fail to recognize life occurring in another form? Read the rest of this entry »

I was on a conference call with a group of very thoughtful and insightful women a couple of weeks ago. This community has chosen to come together once a month to deepen our journeys, reflecting on where we are and how we can help each other to see more deeply what is possible. The format and flow of our conversations are very organic, determined by who shows up and what topics emerge. Read the rest of this entry »

I have been packing my house to move. AND I am finding many relevant tips for my journey. For instance, packing causes me to consciously look at what I want to carry on the next step of my journey. Where in the past, I might have chosen a number of sentimental objects or personal notes; I am asking myself whether the joy of rereading all of them or seeing them again is worth finding space in the new house. What if I choose one or two as reminders and release the rest? Read the rest of this entry »

I have been listening to the media coverage of the Supreme Court’s deliberations on an aspect of health care legislation. Rather than finding them boring, as I initially anticipated, I find myself fascinated and immensely grateful.

I am grateful to live in a country where legislators elected by the people engage a political process to implement laws that serve the betterment of entire country. AND I find myself even more grateful to live in a country that is dynamic and changing, a country where we continue to question laws even when they have been passed. AND a country where a small band of intelligent judges come together to engage a process of thoughtful deliberation that is antithetical to the direction our technology seems to take today. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday I noticed a series of amazing and delightful moments that each seemed to brim with life. In each I felt  whole and fully alive. These moments were not intellectually complex or complicated. They were beautifully pure and elegantly simple. And each time I found myself in a state of glee-filled joy and timeless presence. In those moments, I needed nothing. I sought nothing.

These moments are when life happens. Being present is all that is asked of us to experience miracles unfolding before our eyes. In moments, we have no awareness of time. We expect nothing and as a result, are open to whatever unfolds. Instead of trying to recapture or hold onto incomplete memories, we are invited to recognize that each moment is an invitation to experience life, as it happens. Read the rest of this entry »

April 1 is April Fool’s Day. Such a fun tradition that evokes the playful games of childhood. A day when we consciously recognize that what someone says will be less than the complete truth. And when we consciously know that things are not what they may appear to be. Read the rest of this entry »

We live in a time where there is an increased divide between those who seek to live in the moment, aware of its gift and those who unconsciously live into the scripts of the roles they play in life. In the interest of supporting our ability to recognize that what we do in life is not who we are, I would like to offer something that came to me as I was reflecting on a gorgeous flower. Read the rest of this entry »

I have been talking with several different clients this week and noticed a theme underlying their experience of life as joyful or filled with endless busyness and distraction. The underlying theme in either case is relationships. What if, for every experience of joy (expansion) or frustration (contraction), the key to changing the dynamic is to recognize that the relationship we have with a particular person, situation, belief, or idea either gets us closer to who we want to be and how we want to invest our gifts or takes us away from those dreams. Read the rest of this entry »