Cool, Calm, Gutsy Courage
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.” Emerson Imagine being in your car at an intersection, waiting for the light to change. It seems forever . . . and your mind drifts. In other words, you’ve stopped paying attention, but the driver behind you […]
I Want a Silverback Father!
I’m certain we could learn a lot from silverback gorillas. Not about grooming habits, but about the way they care for their young. The movie Instinct stars Anthony Hopkins as an anthropologist who lives among a community of gorillas for two years. He starts out as a detached observer, but it isn’t long before they […]
No Limits
There are those among us who put things in clear focus even when not intending to. I cross paths occasionally with a woman confined to a wheelchair. Several years ago, she lost the use of her legs due to a car accident. I chuckle over that word “confined” when I describe her because nothing could […]
Leaving Your Cage
A cage is anything that confines, reduces, inhibits or limits us. This includes our distorted ideas about ourselves. In Meet Your True Self, my previous post, Brad woke up to the fact that his inner roommate, also known as an inner critic, was a liar. In that mere flash of an instant, Brad freed himself from a […]
You Create Your World
So You Create Your thoughts are setting the stage for things to come. As you think, so you create. If you believe your dreams are attainable, so you create. If you anticipate failure, so you create. If you imagine being smiled at tomorrow, so you create. If you predict rejection, so you create. If you […]
July 4th for Your Spirit
“The deeper human nature needs to breathe the precious air of liberty.” —Dalai Lama We’re hard-wired to seek freedom, according to Muriel James. In her book, Perspectives in Transactional Analysis, she writes: The urge to be free is closely related to the urge to live. Freedom is the first struggle for life. It starts […]
Be Brave and Speak Up
Ever find yourself in the midst of a group of people engaged in a bashfest? Some unfortunate individual is being maligned or trashed behind their back. What to do? Join in to feel a part of things? Or stand there, silently uncomfortable? Either choice makes our soul uneasy. It feels like we’re participating in a […]
Seek Sunlight
“I felt like a cage was around me when I was with John. I wasn’t me. I was afraid to be me. I was always nervous about doing the wrong thing and setting him off.” Those words were spoken by my client, Marta, who finally left her husband because he’s an alcoholic—he got violent. Click […]
Avoid the Muck and Guck
I found a perfect piece of advice for those of us who try to fix someone else’s distorted thinking. It’s an old Russian proverb that says: “Don’t drive a car straight down a crooked road.” Easier said than done, especially if we’re the target of someone’s erroneous accusations. At those times, it’s extremely difficult […]
Life’s Hidden Agenda
The soul wants growth and that doesn’t translate into a smooth ride. I think life is akin to climbing into a canoe and paddling down a stream that’s rife with challenges and uncertainties. Yes, it’s risky and stress-provoking—to say the least. But if we hang in there, we get really good at navigating obstacles. Call […]