I Wasn’t Built for Routine
Experience the Benefits of Mindfulness: Join eM Life’s Free One Percent Challenge
Whether you’re a regular reader here or you just found your way to Tiny Buddha recently, odds are you’re familiar with the practice of mindfulness, but you may not be aware of the many benefits.
A regular mindfulness practice can not only boost your mood, reduce your stress level, and help you be less reactive, it can also enhance your creativity, improve your sleep, and increase your resilience so you’re better able to handle life’s varied disappointments and challenges.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Studies have shown that a regular mindfulness practice can also give you a …
How to Help Without Hurting Yourself and Avoid Healer Burnout
“Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals.” ~Pema Chodron
The technical term is Baader-Meinhof phenomenon. This is when one stumbles upon a new, unfamiliar, or unusual piece of information, and soon encounters that same subject again, within a short time, sometimes repeatedly.
So, for example, you decided to take the plunge for that hipster, purple hair streak that you thought was so punk rock, but now you see it on everyone.
You have recently been car shopping, narrowing it down to a couple of choices, and now Honda Fits are …
How to Take Back Control from the Negative Script in Your Head
“You don’t have to control your thoughts. You just have to stop letting them control you.” ~Dan Millman
I’d love to say I had an “Eat, Pray, Love” moment where sitting sobbing in the bathroom I received divine guidance to leave my husband and go traveling the world eating amazing food. But sadly, it wasn’t quite that profound.
It was more a long series of nights sobbing in the bathroom, looking at myself in the mirror, and concluding “You’re broken.”
I wasn’t depressed and hadn’t been for a long time. My anxiety, a lifelong companion, was under control. …
The Mountain of Should by Brady Gill
Many people are living inauthentic lives because of all the “shoulds” they are listening to. Some “shoulds” are from their friends and family, some are from the world around them, and many are the voice inside their own head.
The Mountain of Should reminds us that “shoulds” are a universal experience. It inspires us to imagine what it might take to let go of those “shoulds” and what is possible when we do.
We Get to Define Our Experiences and Decide What We Take from Them
“When something bad happens you have three choices. You can let it define you, let it destroy you, or you can let it strengthen you.” ~Unknown
It’s massively important how we define our world and the experiences we have in it. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to learn that early in my life.
When I was twelve, my stepfather was a homicidal-leaning, violent alcoholic. I believe my mother must have suffered a Stockholm Syndrome kind of relationship with him. They were together for thirteen years even though they separated several times.
He tried to kill us all on more than …
How to Push Through Phases of Uncertainty
“I beg you, to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don’t search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.” ~Rainer Maria Rilke
I once trekked on my own along the Salkantay Trail …
Chalk Marks in the Rain by Maddie Southorn
I wrote this song, Chalk Marks in the Rain, after a devastating breakdown of a long-term relationship. My whole life changed in an instant, and I needed to capture those emotions and share them as honestly as I could. The song is entirely made up of my voice; I wanted to be the instrument and create layers and textures that mirrored the words.
How to Break Free from the Past and Start Feeling Good Enough
“My biggest fear is that I’m not good enough. I have this voice in my head that I’ve been battling for years that says, ‘You’re not really talented enough. You don’t really deserve this.’ ” ~Rachel Platten
When we’re continually surrounded by unrealistic beauty standards in the media and highlight reels of others’ success on social media, it’s no surprise that many of us feel like we don’t measure up or fit the ideals of perfection.
At some point in our lives maybe we were rejected for the color of our skin, the shape of our bodies, or for the …
Lilac Sky by Jules Giancola
In my painting Lilac Sky, I use bold, vibrant colors to reflect the energy and feelings emitted by the body. In this work, color becomes a way to express an element of nature and visually creates a merge between human emotion and the natural environment.
Happy Dog by Katya Buthker
Created using charcoal. Was commissioned as a Christmas gift from a husband to his wife. Original size was quite large at 19in x 24in.
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. 