
Are your relationships fueled by love or fear?
Mindfulness
I don’t write much about my son, now 15, out of respect for his privacy and journey to becoming a young man. But it’s not a secret among my friends that parenting a teen has been the hardest thing my husband and I have ever done. (I’m…

Change your environment, change your perspective
Mindfulness, Self-CareThis past weekend while I was leading a women’s self-care retreat at Esalen–a beautiful, legendary 40-year-old retreat center in stunning Big Sur, CA–I was reminded of the power of changing environments to shift perspective.
As I lay…

Do you see things in black and white?
Mindfulness“Nothing is either good or bad but thinking makes it so.” ~Shakespeare
Around the globe, many of us are experiencing deep frustration and despair right now. Others are expanding joyfully into new ways of being and seeing.
And most…

Feeling powerless? Try action-motivation-action
MindfulnessThis past July I was driving in Austin and heard a news story about Syrian refugees who were stranded in the middle of the Mediterranean in a political gridlock with slim hopes of making it to a safe haven. They apparently had embarked on the…

Beware of a sense of urgency
MindfulnessAs I reflect on how I want to experience this fall, I'm reminded about a parenting workshop I attended years ago at my son’s Montessori school on peace-based education. The seminar offered kids and parents a model for conflict resolution and…

Ask yourself THIS before summer slips away
Life Balance, MindfulnessMy son starts his sophomore year of high school in two weeks and I feel like the last day of school was yesterday.
If I had to choose a few words to describe our family's summer, I'd say productive, fruitful and filled with growth and challenges.…

When we feel it, we heal it
Life Balance, MindfulnessHow comfortable are you "feeling uncomfortable feelings?" During my 20's and 30's I experienced my parent's divorce, my brother's suicide, and the death of my mother and father. All of the pain, sadness, betrayal, anger and abandonment these…

3 reasons to schedule an unplugged day
MindfulnessToday marks my first day back in the office after a week unplugged (no computer use, email, TV/movies and only minimal phone use). I spent the last five days working in my garden, writing, swimming, doing creative visioning for my business,…

Are you embracing the “status quo?”
Mindfulness, Women's RetreatsThe other night my husband and I got to catch up with good friends over a glass of wine. I commented to my friend Eric, a seasoned software developer, that the Austin job market is one of the hottest in the U.S. and it’s a great time to explore…

Want true freedom? Do it different
MindfulnessThis morning as I prepared to head out to my usual Saturday morning yoga class, I remembered hearing about a beginner/intermediate modern dance class that had peaked my interest. I'm an avid yogi and Nia fan but I haven't done any type of dance…

How to be a human
Mindfulness, Women's RetreatsNot long ago my husband and I were milling around in the kitchen making breakfast and lunches and preparing for school and work. We looked up and saw our 15 year-old on his computer. My husband took a peek as he walked behind my son’s back—we…

Are you in transition, too?
Life Balance, MindfulnessTran·si·tion. tranˈziSH(ə)n,tranˈsiSH(ə)n/. noun 1. the process or a period of changing from one state of being or condition to another
I got to connect with some dear friends over the holiday weekend and it seems just about…