"When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us."Alexander Graham Bell This quote, etched in a small glass frame, sat on the counter in my home studio for over a decade. Last year, I opted to allow it to … Continue reading Sometimes a door closes slowly
“All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust.”J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan It's easy to overthink every detail, to over-plan and over-prepare. But sometimes, you just have to trust in the intelligence of life. When I used 99 Designs to explore the book cover design for An Accidental Awakening: It's not about … Continue reading A leap of faith
"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
"Creativity doesn't wait for that perfect moment. It fashions its own perfect moments out of ordinary ones."Bruce Garrabrandt The muse can be conjured. Invited. Invoked. One of the mantras that has stayed with me all these years, is the mantra of creativity. Not just for painters and writers, cooks and potters, but for anyone who … Continue reading The Mantra of Creativity
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
On this day, the Bell Let's Talk day for mental health, I encourage you to do 2 things: 1. Nourish yourself Even if that means all you can do today is take a bath or a shower and get dressed. Do that. And know that it is enough. I never expected to spend a good … Continue reading Room to Breathe
I have been waiting all year to say goodbye to the year of Earth Pig. At the start of each Chinese New Year, I listen in to the energy forecast of the coming year from one of my teachers, Master Chunyi Lin. I use his forecast to feng shui my home according to the incoming … Continue reading 5 things I learned from the year of Earth Pig.
While loading the dishwasher yesterday, I turned on the TV to see Valerie Bertinelli on the Today Show. I love Valerie. She was part of my childhood. Who here grew up with One Day at a Time? I paused to listen to what she had to say. She talked openly about her struggle with emotional … Continue reading Emotional Eating
De-cluttering. I love it. It makes me infinitely happy to create space in my life. That space doesn't always remain, but it's still nice when it emerges. Over a year ago, I participated in a course by Joshua Becker: Becoming Minimalist. It's always fun to jump in on the energy of a group exercise. The … Continue reading Un-busy your Business
It's the first full day of winter and I sit on my studio floor, cleaning out the old of last year to make room for the new. Chocolate-covered hazelnuts and damiana tea fuel my efforts. My clutter is most often piles of writing: pages of musings, poems, blog posts that never made it to the … Continue reading Washing away the old: December rain
Stephanie Hrehirchuk - Author 