This morning, I woke up and looked out the window at the Rocky Mountains in the distance. It's been a year-and-a-half since I've moved into this home. Our last home had a full view of the Rockies to the west. We lived there for fifteen years. This home has a partial west view and more … Continue reading From past to present moment
When my son was born, the cord was wrapped around his neck. Each time I pushed, his heart rate slowed and nearly stopped. When I rested, his heart rate returned to normal, well, as normal as the heart of a newborn about to emerge into the world can beat. My sense was to stop, let … Continue reading Time to push
I toyed with the idea of letting go of 50% of my stuff. There is something freeing about continuing to move things along with gratitude. I feel lighter and my heart is happy honouring each item with a simple thank you. As my new linen closet filled up this week, I added old towels to … Continue reading No backsies: memory lane decluttering item #2
So, after months of preparations to launch the companion course to the book, Householder Yogini, I sent off the email to my Mailchimp list. I sent myself the test email (as one does in order to be professional and catch any errors). It looked great. Then I sent it to my entire email list. Then … Continue reading Sometimes it takes a Hippopotamus to lighten the mood
My daughter turned 13 two weeks ago. Last week at the breakfast table, she held my large measuring cup filled with water and a red drinking straw. "So, this Youtuber says I should drink 2 litres of water a day. I tried it but I had to stop because I thought I was going to throw … Continue reading How much water do I really need?
We sometimes use the word opposite as if it has a negative connotation. But often opposite is the medicine you need. In Ayurveda, India's 5000-year-old science of life and sister science of yoga, the 3 doshas (comprised of the 5 elements) make up each person's unique constitution: vata (air and space), pitta (fire and water), … Continue reading Buddhism & Ayurveda Agree: the answer is opposite
My teenage son, my husband and I all stood in the kitchen chatting, as families now do, about the state of the world and what needs to happen. We covered everything from Jeff Bezos to the spread of Buddhism after the Chinese invasion. Photo by Burst on Pexels.com My take was (and is) that we … Continue reading Karma in the kitchen
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there."13th century Sufi poet, Rumi Years ago, I belonged to a small group of women who met every full moon to meditate together and receive insight. During one such meditation in my home studio, my long-time, dear friend received a great insight indeed. … Continue reading I’ll meet you in the garden
"You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day. Unless you're too busy, then you should sit for an hour."Old Zen saying It works that way, it really does. One of the best things I have found in my life is a meditation practice. Now let's talk about the crazy that is often my … Continue reading When practice feels difficult
Tonglen (Tibetan: གཏོང་ལེན་, Wylie: gtong len, or tonglen) is Tibetan for 'giving and taking' (or sending and receiving), and refers to a meditation practice found in Tibetan Buddhism. Tong means "giving or sending", and len means "receiving or taking". Tonglen is also known as exchanging self with other. Wikipedia I first encountered tonglen years ago in Sedona. Though the … Continue reading Insight in unlikely places
Stephanie Hrehirchuk - Author 