Peaceful Thoughts and Affirmations, Resilience, Practices for Cultivating Love

Can Cultivating Positive Emotions Help You Succeed?

So, here’s a question: Can cultivating positive emotions help you succeed? I am going to answer this question shortly, but first I have a favor to ask. Please pause  for a moment and think of something you saw or experienced recently that delighted you or gave you joy. Think about it for about thirty seconds… Continue reading Can Cultivating Positive Emotions Help You Succeed?

Self-compassion, Working With Painful Emotions, Self-Love and Self-Directed Kindness, Dealing with Low Self-Worth, Practices for Cultivating Love

Do You Live from the Inside Out or Outside In?

Do you live from the inside out or the outside in?  Okay, to be honest, that is not an entirely fair question to ask you at the beginning of this post. I coined the phrases Living from the Inside Out and Living from the Outisde In. And I haven't even told you what they mean… Continue reading Do You Live from the Inside Out or Outside In?

Self-Love and Self-Directed Kindness, Spirituality, Practices for Cultivating Love

How to Find Your Purpose

Purpose is important. When we have a purpose, we feel like our life is meaningful, that we matter, and that we contribute something good to the world. Nevertheless, it can sometimes feel a little tricky to find our purpose. We don't necessarily receive a lot of instruction in life on how to find it, and… Continue reading How to Find Your Purpose

Practices for Cultivating Love

Letting Your Light Shine vs. Slave-Driving Yourself

One of the greatest things we can do for ourselves and others is learn to let our light shine, rather than slave-driving ourselves. Let me explain. I want to remind you today that you have permission to make mistakes and fail. You also have permission to feel sad, to take naps, and to take a… Continue reading Letting Your Light Shine vs. Slave-Driving Yourself

Whimsy and Delight, Practices for Cultivating Love

Month Three and Four of Monkey Bar Hanging: Let Me Tell You a Secret

I have been hanging and playing on monkey bars in my back yard almost every day for the last four months, and I am blogging about it each month. Let me tell you a secret: This is hard; I am still not very good at it; and sometimes I think I will never get anywhere.… Continue reading Month Three and Four of Monkey Bar Hanging: Let Me Tell You a Secret

Working With Painful Emotions, Self-Love and Self-Directed Kindness, Dealing with Low Self-Worth, Practices for Cultivating Love

When We Feel Like We Have No Purpose

Sometimes we feel like we have no purpose, and this is really painful. Human beings need purpose. We need to feel like we have something special that we  share with the world. Given this need, it is understandable why we suffer painful feelings when we think we aren’t good at anything. For example, we may… Continue reading When We Feel Like We Have No Purpose

Contemplative Practice, Spirituality, Practices for Cultivating Love

Butterfly Meditating: A Contemplative Practice

Recently, I have developed a new contemplative practice I call Butterfly Meditating. I have a wildflower garden in my back yard, and when it is in full bloom, it attracts a lot of butterflies.  All of the photos in this post are taken by me at home or on a walk. I get really excited… Continue reading Butterfly Meditating: A Contemplative Practice

Body Partnership, Whimsy and Delight, Practices for Cultivating Love

Month Two of Monkey Bar Hanging

Last month, I started practicing monkey bar hanging for my daily practice for this year. (Last year I practiced deep breathing. You can read about that here.)* To be honest, the first part of the month was a wash. In the first month of my practice (May), I gained a lot of strength very quickly.… Continue reading Month Two of Monkey Bar Hanging

Contemplative Practice, Spirituality, Practices for Cultivating Love

Labyrinth Walking: A Contemplative Practice

I have been building and walking labyrinths the last couple of weeks, and I love it. Spiral art, and I take labyrinths to be a type of spiral art, have long been a part of contemplative practice for both non-religious and religious people. I first started noticing spirals when I was researching art and culture… Continue reading Labyrinth Walking: A Contemplative Practice