Inviting death back into Halloween
Happy Dia de los Muertos, the end of the three-day festival from Mexico that celebrates the souls of ancestors, friends, and family members who have died, and supports their journey in the afterlife. The Mexican event, which began 3000 years ago, was shifted to sync with a three-day Christian festival that also honors the departed, Allhallowtide. The […]
Honoring fall
I love fall with its bittersweet splendor. Months of dark rain lurk just around the corner, yet the leaves today are at their most brilliant. Nature prepares herself to let go and rest before beginning next season’s growth. I wish I could let go and rest my mind as well–and fall may be the perfect […]
Is empathy wearing you out? (And what you can do about it…)
Do you feel exhausted after listening to just ten minutes of news? Last week, as I was driving to the ferry and listening to Public Radio, I heard about: Mounting death toll in California, fires still raging, property destroyed; Puerto Rico still without power and basic health care for many; New facts about the Las Vegas […]
Cultivate the space for creativity
You know the adage: “The past is the past,” often spoken as if the past is over and no longer a dynamic force in our lives. But is that so? Doesn’t the past still act upon us? And if that’s true, can’t we be a partner in the exchange and shape the story that we make about […]
When times feel senseless, work artfully
I woke up early Monday morning enjoying that magical moment before the dawn, when the earth lies resting, undisturbed, my mind is peaceful, and I can reflect a bit before the world wakes up and consumes my attention. I was writing on the topic, “What does it mean to work artfully?” one that is key […]
When you’re fogged in, follow the markers
There are mornings, here in the Pacific Northwest, when the fog covers the fields in a sheet of gray, and I can only see a few feet ahead as I walk out to feed the horses, Then there are mornings when a mental fog descends, and the path that seemed so clear the day before […]
Create a world. In six words.
Remember when you were in grade school and you returned from your summer break, knowing that your new teacher would ask you, once again, to write a story called My Summer Vacation. Why not write a story now that can convey the essence of your summer, in only six words? You know that images can say […]
Do you suffer from email apnea?
When you return from a vacation, does anticipating all those waiting e-mails make your stomach twist? (I’m just back from my staycation.) Or, after devoting a morning to sorting through your inbox, does your brain go in circles as you find yourself getting increasingly cranky and irritated? You may have email apnea! Linda Stone, technology consultant […]
How to plan a staycation that will make you want to stay home
Update: I wrote this during a summer when the smoke from fires was such we had to stay home. Little did I know that two years later a pandemic would be asking us all to stay home for a year. The information is still relevant, even if the context has changed. […]
Working from the vulnerable void
Brené Brown did the world a great service when she shared, from her research and experience, about the importance of being willing to be vulnerable. But just because her TEDx talk went wildly viral and has been applauded by millions around the planet doesn’t make it any easier to stand, exposed, before others. I know, […]
