Permission

I give myself permission to not work all the time. I give myself permission to say no. I am learning to give myself permission to be free of guilt for both of these. I give myself permission to be sad. I give myself permission to allow others to have their own emotions. I give myself...

The Tough Conversation

  The tough conversation.  Many times, we avoid it.  And understandably so--these are the conversations in which the words and emotions shared do not immediately feel warm and fuzzy.  Instead, there is awkwardness and tension.  Even when done in healthy, loving ways these conversations feel halting and jerky, filled with missteps and imperfection. Here's what...

Reflections on My Inner Critic

I am trying to be more curious about my inner critic. When I first began this post, I wrote it in an interview, Q&A style because I wanted to create a separation between my core self and this particular part of me. I wanted to emphasize for myself that this part of me, while strong...

Allowing the Mirror to Speak Back

  A few months ago, I happened to see myself on camera.  My immediate reaction was--"Is that what I really look like?!" (I was not pleased).  When this happened, I turned to my students and asked them this question. They looked at me oddly (they weren't expecting me to ask this question at this particular...

The Gift of the Darkness

I'm writing this for myself. When darkness and disappointment visit, each of us has a tried-and-true way of responding.  Me, I get sad and fall down a rabbit hole of depression, self-doubt, and apathy.  Then I bury myself in my work and become very task-oriented because that's where I perceive the most success and control. ...

The Pebble in My Shoe

Restlessness weighed me down today.  I'm sure I'm not the only one.  In fact, I think many people have experienced the discomfort of restlessness in particularly intense ways over the last few days, weeks, and months. My restlessness came in the form of lack of focus.  I was both uninterested and unable to focus on...

Lessons from the Job

"Often the spiritual and recovery lessons we're learning at work reflect the lessons we're learning in other areas of our life.  Often, the systems we're attracted to in our working life are similar to the systems in which we find ourselves living and loving.  Those are the systems that reflect our issues and can help...

Daily Walk

Today I took my walk. It was my regular, mid-afternoon quarantine walk Where my goal is to get 8,000 steps in a day as opposed to my pre-quarantine 12,000 steps). Where I aimed to get some vitamin D and clear my mind. But today was different. Today, my goal was to shake off the fear...

Learning to Quiet the Mind: Silencing the Chattering Monkeys

The pandemic has caused the world (including my own little world) to come to a screeching halt. When rumors began to swirl that schools would be shifting from face-to-face learning to distance education, I looked forward to being able to work from home and slow my pace.  I thought- "I will get to rest and...

Writing As Revelation

While on a walk, a friend of mine gently brought up my writing routine.  As a writer himself, he understands the joy, peace and feeling of groundedness that comes from expression through writing. He also understands the heaviness of the process, the doubts and insecurities one experiences over what is produced, and habit of walking...