The Late-Night Conversation We emerged from the tunnel. It was still dark, street lamps lit the way in the early hours. I was driving a pal home from a late-night party. The friend swayed in his seat drunkenly but talked fluently. I hung on every word. He made a lot… Read More »How to prime your mind for positivity
I tried telling them. They wouldn’t stop. Just couldn’t stop. Lips curled upwards, brimming with joy, little faces lit up. They smiled and giggled and giggled some more as they relentlessly tried to drag me to the floor. It wasn’t a done deal. I still had a little energy after… Read More »Parenting with Presence
Triggered. Mental health fired up. ‘Triggered’ is not really a turn of phrase I like. However, it is one that describes how I’ve felt on several occasions over the past two weeks or so. Consumption of online content in all its variety is common for most of us. It has… Read More »Mental Health and Online Life
Rampaging wildfires. Frequent floods. The looming threat of all-out war. Meanwhile environmental activists sit in prison cells awaiting trials. Welcome to 2024! Amidst the contemporary whirlwind of clickbait news, political turmoil, and social division, the essential conversations and actions towards climate justice have become increasingly sidelined. In the face of… Read More »On Climate Action: Small steps bring about a better tomorrow
“Overwhelmed, burned out, fatigued” “I can’t do it” “I need a holiday” This could have been my inner monologue for a couple of weeks in the earlier part of this year. Yet two helpful practices have pulled me back into the running for 2024. You see, 2023 was a good… Read More »How to bullet journal using the Kaizen method
The drums of war are beating. Conflict is boiling over. Spilling out from Ukraine and the Middle-East like magma flows from angry volcanic eruptions. At the same time politics seems gridlocked. Battle lines are being drawn up. The Western powers, some potentially underprepared, are waking up to the reality large-scale… Read More »Zen Buddhism and the coming War
Hard rain. Torrential rain. Rain that drums on the roof like it wants to get in. Accompanying gale force winds. Whipping through the trees, whistling and howling. Change has come to the weather. The last week of ice and frost with its pleasant, expansive open blue skies has given way… Read More »Change and Enlightenment the Zen Buddhist Way
Acceleration. It feels good to be moving. Hitting the pace. Autumn sunlight caresses the skyline and the bright yellows and subtle browns of my window view begin to blur as the train picks up speed. Swiftly approaching 120 miles per hour. Positioning my mind to have a good day, I… Read More »On Personal Development: Building People and Having Faith
The world is burning yet there is hope Juxtaposition is an awkward word. It feels odd to say, strange to write and dubious to use. Yet I think it accurately describes my emotional and spiritual standing at the moment. Externally the world is on edge. There are no breaks. From… Read More »On the Importance of Hope
Doodling with Intent This weekend I taught my son how to draw expansively. At least that’s what I’m calling it. I don’t know what the word is for drawing doodles which connect to each other but it must be a thing. The rain poured outside. The little ones had tired… Read More »Doodles, Old Souls, and Koans: Lessons from a Rainy Afternoon
Tick. Tick. Tick. The gentle, rhythmic ticking of a watch, each second marks the relentless passage of time. Now, imagine that watch transformed into a canvas. A scenic depiction. A wrist-sized snapshot of life in all it’s splendour, as well as displaying passing seconds, minutes and hours. In the vibrant… Read More »On Time: What is your relationship to your watch?
Scary Times I close my eyes. Blackness. Solitude. Fear of the unknown. I picture horrendous things out there in the darkness. My inner voice tells me they want to harm me. Shadow beings with teeth like knives and creatures with many horns and limbs. Crawling, scrambling somewhere out behind the… Read More »How does storytelling create reality?