“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” ~Ian Maclaren A friend recently told me a story about her mother that stayed with me. They walk together some evenings around her mom’s apartment building—part exercise, part ritual. Her mom doesn’t enjoy...

“The opposite of belonging is not isolation—it’s fitting in.” ~Brené Brown One of my earliest memories comes from kindergarten. My mom had bought me a new pair of navy-blue corduroy pants for an event at school. We didn’t get new clothes often, so this felt important....

‘When you hear me talk about the Void, do not at once fall into the idea of vacuity. It is of the utmost importance that we should not fall into this idea, because when a man sits quietly and keeps his mind blank he will abide in a state of ‘‘Voidness of...

“I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.” ~Joseph Campbell I was sitting on my yoga mat with my legs stretched out in front of me. I bent forward into a fold, puffing and clenching my...

Gratitude has become more than a practice for me. It is my lifestyle, my anchor, and my strength. There have been seasons in my life filled with uncertainty, financial challenges, responsibilities, and moments of confusion. At times, I felt overwhelmed by debts, basic...

‘Learned Audience, those who recite the word 'Prajna' the whole day long do not seem to know that Prajna is inherent in their own nature. But mere talking on food will not appease hunger, and this is exactly the case with these people.’ Hui Neng

“What will mess you up most in life is the picture in your head of how it is supposed to be.” ~Unknown I expected to get into college. I expected to have a career after a lot of hard work, and that one day I’d meet a nice man and we would get married. We would buy our...

‘Our very nature is Buddha, and apart from this nature there is no other Buddha.’ Hui Neng