Be Nice to Yourself. You Did the Best You Could.

“The most sophisticated people I know — inside they are all children.” ~Jim Henson On my desk at home, I keep a photo of myself at approximately two years old. Aside from being adorable, this photo reminds me that I haven’t always been the full grown, slightly neurotic, culturally conditioned, emotional baggage-toting, self-armoring, surprisingly skeptical version of myself I am today. …

Why Balance is Elusive But Alignment is Essential

“Something is always born of excess:  great art was born of  great terror, great loneliness, great inhibitions, instabilities, and it always balances them.” ~Anaïs Nin Ostensibly, I am in the business of balance. I mean, you hear acupuncturists talk about balance all the time, right? And yes! Balance is good. But talking about balance from a purely theoretical perspective can …

Turn Off Your Phone. And Other Tips for Making Magic.

“How did it get so late so soon?” ~Dr. Seuss Every year for the past five years, I have visited an astrologer on or around my birthday to get some insight into the year ahead. (Did I already lose some of you by talking about astrology? Possibly. Probably? I dunno. But oh well. I digress.) Usually, I walk into my …

I Am Not a Robot (or, Why I’m So Transparent About My Life in My Business)

“We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart.” ~Pema Chodron, When Things Fall Apart:  Heart Advice for Difficult Times   I have written before about some of the advice I received when I first started my business. …

When a Fry is Just a Fry (or, Please Don’t Attach Meaning to Everything)

“Half of what I say is meaningless; but I say it so that the other half may reach you.” ~Kahlil Gibran, Sand and Foam Last week, I was having lunch with my boyfriend when he jokingly began to “read” our fries as a way to tell my future. It was hilarious, yes, but it also made me think about how eager …

Let’s Stop Pathologizing Anxiety, Shall We?

“Our task must be to free ourselves… by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”  ~ Albert Einstein Is anxiety always pathological? I think not. As someone with a previous history of panic attacks that seemed to arise out of nowhere, I can say that I am very familiar …