Find Joy in the Story You’re Living
The Power of Silence and How to Really Listen
“The silence between the notes is as important as the notes themselves.” ~Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
When I was younger, I thought knowledge was something you could capture—something you could write down, measure, and prove. I believed that to understand something, I had to explain it. And for a long time, I tried.
But then, life—through film, through music, through long conversations with people whose wisdom couldn’t be found in books—taught me something else: the most powerful truths don’t always come in words. They exist in the space between them.
I learned this lesson in the mountains, where the sky stretches …
The Greatest Transformations Often Emerge from Hardship
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” ~Viktor Frankl
Life has moments that completely reshape us, often without our consent or preparation. Trauma, loss, and grief—they don’t wait until we feel ready to handle them. Instead, they arrive unexpectedly, pinning us against the wall and demanding transformation.
What began as a day like most training days, fueled by focus and determination, unraveled into an unimaginable traumatic event, one that shattered the life I had known.
Prior to that moment, as a fitness trainer by profession, my world was defined by …
Discovering I Lived in Fear, Thinking It Was Love
“Fear is the opposite of love. Love is the absence of fear. Whatever you do out of fear will create more fear. Whatever you do out of love will create more love.” ~Osho
I did not realize I was driven by fear for most of my life.
I thought I was making choices from love by being good, responsible, kind, and successful. Looking back, I see how much of my life was organized around keeping myself safe, and that came from a place of fear.
From the outside, I looked successful, practical, and just fantastic at adult life. In the …
When Healing Feels Lonely: What I Now Know About Peace
“Avoiding your triggers isn’t healing. Healing happens when you’re triggered and you’re able to move through the pain, the pattern, and the story, and walk your way to a different ending.” ~Vienna Pharaon
I thought I had figured it out.
For a year, I had been doing the “inner work”—meditating daily, practicing breathwork, journaling, doing yoga. I had read all the books. I had deconditioned so many behaviors that weren’t serving me: my need to prove, my need to compare, my negative thought patterns. My self-awareness was through the roof. I had hit that deep, deep place in meditation I …
How to Start Teaching Mindfulness (Even if You’re Still Learning)
Sponsored by MindfulnessExercises.com
A few years ago, I was meditating in silence beneath the canopy of a forest monastery in Thailand, questioning everything.
I had left my job, relationships, and most of what I knew to live as a Buddhist monk in the Ajahn Chah tradition—eating one meal a day, sleeping little, and sitting with discomfort, doubt, and the rhythms of the natural world.
But the hardest part wasn’t the mosquitoes or the hunger.
It was this: I was afraid to teach what I was still learning.
Maybe you’ve felt this too—that deep yearning to guide others in healing, in …
Trusting the Pause: When Patience Is Better Than Pushing
“The most powerful thing you can do right now is be patient while things are unfolding for you.” ~Idil Ahmed⠀
I still remember my last year of college vividly. I was frustrated and disheartened after my application to study abroad was rejected. I had been obsessed with exploring the world through academia, convinced that further study was the best way to achieve my dream.
While most of my peers were preparing to enter the workforce, I envisioned a different path for myself—one that involved research, intellectual growth, and ultimately a career in academia.
However, there was one major obstacle: my …
Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine. 