Choosing Peace While Witnessing War
.... and Life Coaching with Joe
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Learning to Work with Emotions
The idea of the “inner child” may sound simplistic, but it gestures toward something true about being human: our emotional life is often far less sophisticated than our thinking mind wants to understands. The intellect would rather manage, dismiss, or reinterpret emotion than feel it directly. But like any child, … Read the rest
The bombs fell on their generation as they were born — drums pounding in the night sky, explosions lighting the heavens with fire and rage. Nazi cruelty tried to pound Britain into submission. But sometimes when cruelty strikes deep to the heart, a seed is planted. John Lennon, Keith Richards, Pete … Read the rest
THE NARCISSISTIC REFLECTION OF EGO
I like to reference Milan kundera’s The Incredible Lightness of Being when discussing ego by reversing the logic to the incredible heaviness of being … me.
Ego is a shallow reflection, an inordinately pronounced subset of mind charged with aligning ourselves with the societal acceptance. Shallow as it may be … Read the rest
Enough.
What does that even mean? How much is ever enough? In a world where scarcity is a commodity, our panic drives us to fill the larder. If less is more, then more is better and the most is the least you should hope for.
My late boomer generation felt the sky was our limit … Read the rest
MONKMODER DOOMSCROLLING
Like monks facing the maelstrom, we have may have our best intentions and ethical training. And yet, we may feel paltry and inadequate standing in the face of hatred and conflict.
Our society is currently at war. Those who have chosen a side may have the luxury of being determined and clear. … Read the rest
I Have Tried in My Way …
I have a pet bird. Or perhaps the bird has a pet human, as it seems to have adopted me. We haven’t actually met face to beak, but it sits on a wire outside my window while I’m meditating. It may perch there at other times, and it … Read the rest
Remembering to Return
Be here and now, they say. Okay. But where the heck is that?
Some would claim we’re right here. Sure. But can we see that? Do we feel, touch, live and know that? Maybe mindfulness is remembering that we have no idea where we are. Until we do, that is. Until … Read the rest
“Keep telling yourself ‘it’s only a movie‘” was the famous tagline for Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left in 1972. It may be appropriate to look at the harrowing moments of our mind with the same encouraging detachment. No matter how serious life may feel in the moment, like a movie, it’s seeming realism … Read the rest
The Foundational Truths
Soon after his enlightenment, Buddha gave a teaching that would become the cornerstone of his path we now know as “The Four Noble Truths”. It happened in northern India, in the 5th–4th century BCE, in Deer Park at Sarnath.
Newly awakened after years of searching, Buddha was reluctant to proclaim his insight. … Read the rest
Understanding Refuge in Modern Times
Ever wish you could just run and hide? Ever play hide and seek with your life because it all becomes too heavy? Do you ever reach for the panic-button in reaction to difficulty? Ever slump in discouragement because it’s all on you, but you just can’t figure it out?
Well, … Read the rest