Ever wonder if your meditation practice is "working"?It's one of those sticky questions that can be hard to get your head around. Some teachings even discourage one from having goals or craving results.Yet we DO have goals or long for change.While it...

“Well, I’m just being honest.”How often have you heard those words? Or perhaps you've been the one saying them in defense of a sharp remark?Truth and kindness are often presented as mutually exclusive: you’re either brutally honest (harsh), or kind (...

Dear friends,When I step back, I still find it hard to believe how intense the last year has been, with so many challenges we continue to face.It can help to think about recovering from a traumatic event (and a global pandemic could certainly approa...

The 8th Century Indian Buddhist philosopher and monk Shantideva once wrote, “All the joy the world contains has come through wishing happiness for others. All the suffering this world contains has come through wanting pleasure for oneself.” ...

I often marvel at how far the practice of mindfulness has reached. From helping patients with chronic pain to supporting mental health and trauma healing, the power of mindfulness has found its way into modern society.At the same time, there are vali...

Dear friends,My heart's been on a bit of a roller coaster this week — from the gut wrenching news of shootings and violence to the hope of spring and vaccines.Meditation can bring healing and wholeness to our hearts and help us respond to the world w...

A wound takes time to heal.All around the world—from Myanmar to Minneapolis—we see the deep need for healing in our families, communities and society. We need to heal from the wounds of colonialism, slavery, racism, sexual violence, hate and poverty....

It’s been a long year since the pandemic started, one that revealed so much that was already wrong with our world: injustice, violence, and gross inequities.Yesterday was the Vernal Equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere. Amidst so much hardship mix...

I was shocked to hear the words come out of my mouth: “Is it really okay to wish myself well? To want to be happy?”We were less than 48 hours into a week-long, silent lovingkindness retreat, where one strengthens kindness through the focused repetiti...

Here where I live in California, spring is in the air. The plum trees are blooming and the days are getting longer, which lifts my heart naturally.There are countless ways to uplift the heart—from gratitude to friendship, from creativity to service....