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Category: Archives

The full collection of explorations.

Love, Like Fire

Published on February 25, 2023

Sometimes love needs space.

What makes the fire burn strong is the balance between wood and no wood; burn and breath; presence and absence.

Too much of one and it’ll smother. Too much of the other and it’ll wane until there’s nothing left for the flames to grab. Navigate this balance mindfully and you’ll keep your fire—and love—burning strong.

Assume the fire will keep itself in order… or try to forcefully overkeep it… and it’ll die.

When you visualize the love you share with another as a fire… what do you see?

A waning, untended to, slowly collapsing fire? A huge pile of wood with a suffocating flame? Or a beautifully balanced, well ordered and maintained fire you can cozy up to at the end of a long, cold day?

Spend some time with this meditation and treat your visualized fire how you would that fire while camping at the outset of a cool, crisp evening.

Love, like fire, requires active involvement if we want to passively enjoy its emanating heat.

Everyday Hiking

Published on February 24, 2023

When walking the path of nature, how many obstructions do you come across?

Fallen branches, protruding tree roots, oversized rocks, ditches, water ways…

And yet, when you’re on a hike—none of this surprises you. Obstructions are expected.

And so you carry on, weaving around, stepping over, ducking under—mindfully making your path forward without carrying any of the extra weight on your mind that might normally arise when an obstruction arises in your worldly path. And the experience is a joy.

Maybe this is a lesson we can learn from hiking.

Maybe we can expect obstructions in our day and look at them not as an irritation, but as an opportunity to overcome and explore. And maybe if we practiced mental hiking more often, we’d carry less weight on our minds and get further along on our paths.

Looking for a good read? Check out my library of books that I’ve uploaded quotes from. You might even find your next favorite read…? :)

Do You Ever Wait In Lines?

Published on February 23, 2023

Dear busy person,

I know you don’t have big chunks of time to rest your mind. So for today, try this: Whenever you’re waiting in a line (in a store, bank, or traffic), DON’T allow yourself to use your phone. Use that time to breathe, people watch, relax bodily tension, smile at strangers, and notice—through ALL of your senses—what’s emerging from the surrounding environment. No calls, no texts, no social media… just for today. See what it does for your mind. And if you like it, maybe try it again tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Your inner work person

Dress For The Weather

Published on February 21, 2023

If there’s anything Buffalo, New York teaches you it’s to dress for the weather—not to be weather dependent.

We’ll go from subzero, pneumonia-inducing, blizzard weather to sunny and 70 within the span of a day and STILL get all of our daily tasks done without missing much of a beat.

Those who wait for “sunny and 70” or allow their moods to follow the moods of the weather, outsource control of their power.

The power that allows them to dress for the weather, keep their internal temperature “sunny and 70” regardless of how cold and cloudy it is on the outside, and get on with it.

P.s. I’m on a mission to help busy people do inner work—so that they can live better lives. If these daily pieces have warmed you up in any way, you can warm my cup up here if you feel so inclined :) ☕️

Relaxed Confidence

Published on February 20, 2023

When you learn to relax inside tense moments with other people, you allow yourself to notice things you’d otherwise miss.

Things like ulterior motives (what’s the real driver behind the actions), underlying beliefs (what’s being said that’s usually being protected by formality), hidden character traits (what’s different in people’s actions when tension is present)—all while keeping a heightened sense of awareness of the environment you’re in.

Letting tension tense you up is a mistake.

When you find yourself in a tense environment, practice relaxing by slowing your breathing, dropping your shoulders, relaxing your facial muscles and tongue, and pausing before responding—right to the point where the silence is starting to feel awkward.

Then, respond with clarity; respond with patience; respond with a more complete understanding of the situation—respond with a relaxed confidence that the best leaders and speakers do when inside some of the most tense moments fathomable.

P.s. What To Do When The “Weight Of The World” Is On Your Shoulders.

Mind Weight

Published on February 19, 2023

Thoughts drain energy like movement drains energy.

Anyone who has sat at a desk for an entire day knows. You could have not gotten up once—not have spent a single calorie from physical movement—and still finished feeling like you unloaded an entire house’s worth of furniture from a moving truck that day—by yourself.

Which is simply to say: if your thoughts are rushing, bustling, and heavy—you’re going to tire more quickly.

And so if you want to do more inside your days—or maybe just do the things you’re doing better/ with more alertness and vitality—you have to learn to let go.

…Let go of the arguments you’re no longer having. Let go of the feelings of comparison that are making you feel like you’re not good enough. Let go of the self-limiting and self-sabotaging beliefs that do nothing but add weight to your mind.

In a world that’s obsessed with increasing energy levels through inputs… coffee… espressos… energy bars/ shots/ gummies/ etc… Maybe focusing on lighting your load is where you’ll actually get the greatest results… through meditation… journaling… therapeutic conversation… etc.

P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.