“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” ~Karl Barth
We were lying in bed. I said, “We can’t do it.” She said, “I don’t see what else we can do.” We lay there in silence, trying to figure it out.
It was the third big decision of our relationship. The first was when I asked Nicole to marry me.… Read More
“Happiness held is the seed. Happiness shared is the flower.” ~John Harrigan
Last week my brother, sister, and brother-in-law visited me, just after my sister’s honeymoon. I’d been on the east coast the week prior, serving as my sister’s Maid of Honor.
On one of our two big day trips, we went to Disneyland—somewhere my boyfriend and I go frequently.… Read More
“Eventually you will come to realize that love heals everything, and love is all there is.” ~Gary Zukav
Growing up, I was lucky that my parents surrounded me with a strong and steady current of love, despite our family’s own little dysfunctions and a knowingness that I wasn’t like other kids.… Read More
“The final proof of greatness lies in being able to endure criticism without resentment.” ~Elbert Hubbard
My self-awareness grows while watching an eight-year-old boy navigate Sudoku.
He wants to be good at the game, but he doesn’t want to do the work. He wants to know the next right answer without having to think.… Read More
“Turn you face toward the sun and the shadows will fall behind you.” ~Maori Proverb
I am looking out of the window of the airplane. We are above the clouds; the evening sun is just setting. There is a glow all around me. I am lost in this moment. I feel like I’ve never been closer to the heavens.… Read More
“Relationships are like glass. Sometimes it’s better to leave them broken than try to hurt yourself putting it back together.” ~Unknown
I’m sitting in the nail salon near my apartment, perusing Vogue and making small talk with the woman who is cradling my hand and filing my nails. We’re catching up on our lives; I tell her I’ve been in Phoenix for the month.… Read More
“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” ~Mother Theresa
It was the second time I’d gone out to lunch with a new friend I met through this site.
We’d experienced some of the same things in life, and I instantly admired her attitude and perspective.
Sometimes when I meet up with people I’ve met through Tiny Buddha, I feel a sense of inner conflict.… Read More
“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore” ~André Gide
A few months ago, I received a gift from my brother while on a vacation in the United States. He was giving each one of us a small token of stone with words carved on them.… Read More
“As long as you make an identity for yourself out of pain, you cannot be free of it.” ~Eckhart Tolle
I have a heart condition. Not one that you could see on an x-ray, or even one that you would find in a medical textbook.
For as long as I can remember, I have felt like my heart has had a gaping hole in it—and I’ve been stuffing anyone, anything into that space to try and feel a little less empty.… Read More
“Be gentle first with yourself if you wish to be gentle with others.” ~Lama Yeshe
Several months ago, I sat in a large workshop audience being led by Kristin Neff, a pioneer in the field of self-compassion research.
She directed us to divide up into pairs for a self-compassion exercise.… Read More
“The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others.” ~Sonya Friedman
In what feels like a previous life, I was a serial dater.
I looked for attention, validation, and identification in relationships. Each guy, however wrong for me, seemed like the perfect fit for my empty hand.
Maybe I hated being around his smoking, but I brushed it off and tried to breathe the other way.… Read More
“I’ve discovered that you can’t change people. They can change themselves.” ~Jim Rohn
“As much I want you to be happy, I’m realizing that I can’t be responsible for your happiness.”
I had never spoken truer words in my life. Even as the tears flowed down my cheeks, I felt a profound sense of freedom and lightness.… Read More
A couple of weeks ago, while reading a post on a different personal development site, I found a comment from a reader who seemed to question the blogger’s intentions and integrity, as it pertains to how he does business.
This reader was direct. She didn’t beat around the bush; she came right out and communicated how she felt.… Read More
“When you judge another, you do not define them. You define yourself.” ~Wayne Dyer
I used to be someone who always gave my opinion, or confronted issues in relationships regardless of whether someone was in the mood for what I had to say.
I always brought up whatever was bothering me or said my opinion, perhaps in not so tactful ways.… Read More
“Be gentle first with yourself if you wish to be gentle with others.” ~Lama Yeshe
Think back to the last time somebody apologized to you about something. Did you forgive them? There is a very good chance that you did.
Now think back to the last time you harmed someone else.… Read More
“I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do! That is character!” ~Theodore Roosevelt
I’m currently doing the whole “quit my job to pursue a dream” thing. I left the security and stability of having a salary along with a supposed career.… Read More
“Speak when you are angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” ~Laurence J. Peter
Finances, relationships, responsibilities, and life in general can certainly create a great deal of noise in our heads. However, if we truly want to feel inner peace, we must take the time to learn to be mindful instead of mind full.… Read More
“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” ~Robert Brault
Yesterday, as my boyfriend and I were driving home from a quick trip to Vegas, we saw a sign for a ghost town and decided to do some exploring.
I’ve always loved the idea of a ghost town—a place left untouched for years, still reflecting the people who once inhabited it, as if they’d just picked up and left mere moments ago.… Read More
“An unhurried sense of time is in itself a sort of wealth.” ~Bonnie Friedman
We live in a society that favors material wealth over human wealth. Fame, fortune, and glamorous toys are what we are told to strive for with no thought to time, freedom, spirituality, and love. Even if you are just struggling to make ends meet, magazines and television will tell you to keep chasing the material dream.… Read More
“Make the other person feel important, and do it sincerely.” ~Dale Carnegie
About 20 years ago, I read Dale Carnegie’s classic book, How to Win Friends & Influence People. I loved the book and passed it along to my wife, Marcie. She read a bit of it and returned it to me saying, “This is all common sense.… Read More
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