I don’t love to workout, even though I’m thoroughly convinced that it is crucial for my longevity both mentally and physically. I love my daily walks. I love my daily stretching. I love my daily meditation and quiet morning time for reading and journaling. But, I do not love weight training. At all. Not one little bit. But last week, …
You ARE the Traffic
I was frustrated and stopped in what seemed like endless traffic on a crowded LA freeway when I looked up to read a billboard that said, “You ARE the traffic.” The truth of the simple statement took a moment to register, and then it made me smile. It was a funny little reminder that while we are looking out at …
Today’s Buffet
We didn’t go out to eat much when I was young. I grew up out in the piney woods of southeast Texas, and there weren’t many restaurant choices in my tiny hometown. But, when my mother would go “into town” for shopping, we would often have lunch at a buffet restaurant called Luby’s. It was always a treat! As a …
An Instrument of Peace
I’m not Catholic, but I love many of the beautiful traditions of the Catholic faith. My favorite is the lovely story and mythology surrounding the 13th century Italian Saint Francis of Assisi, the church’s patron saint of animals. My mother always had some stone version of St. Francis in her flower gardens, usually surrounded by bird feeders and birdbaths. Often the …
The Q-1 Reset
January 1st is just another ordinary day, like any other of the 365 days of the year. There is absolutely nothing concrete that gives it any more meaning than any other day. And yet, somehow, it is different. It wields a powerful energy across the western world of rebirth, renewal, and re-commitment. I know it’s essentially arbitrary, something that our …
Real Rest
“What are you doing?” asked my husband when he walked outside and saw me sitting in a patio chair. “Nothing,” I replied, “but I feel like I should be doing something.” “Then you’re not really doing nothing. You’re worrying about doing nothing.” Sometimes, he nails me. It was truly a rare sight for him because I’m in the habit of …
On Election Day, Choose Wisely
This just might be the most important Monday Morning Stretch I have ever written. As you read this, within 24 hours, we will elect a new American president. Whatever the results, half of the country will be disappointed, if not downright angry, frightened, and despondent, except for (I hope!) our readers. I’m banking on the notion that if you’ve been …
The Intentional Feelings List
This is a confession of a recovering OCD professional. Sometimes, I guess to feel productive and complete, I write things down on my daily to-do list that I’ve already done just so I can cross them off. Ridiculous, I know, but painfully true. This week, as I began to succumb to this silly habit once again, I wondered why. Why …
Triggers
Triggers. Just like a firearm, they get pulled sometimes with even the slightest touch. Emotional triggers get pulled all around us every day. Someone puts an opinion on social media, and then someone with a different opinion lobs an insult. The first person is triggered and fires back. In a flash it has escalated into an adult game of “I …
Focus
I have decided that I am a big fan of focus, not because I’m always good at it but because I’m not. I have a lot of interests, a busy life, and, like all of us, I live in a fast-paced world. It’s easy to decide that constant distractions and operating in a consistently fragmented way and juggling multiple demands …
