The central question of a warrior’s training is not how we avoid uncertainty and fear but how we relate to discomfort. How do we practice with difficulty, with our emotions, with the unpredictable encounters of an ordinary day? Pema Chödrön, Comfortable with Uncertainty photo credit: Fraochsidhe
Remember those wonderful resolutions made back in January? How are they working out for you? I vowed to get rid of most of my crap and eliminate the visual clutter in my life. Hmm, that task needs to be revisited. July 1 marks the beginning of a new fiscal year and an excellent opportunity for [...]
We must bear in mind, then, that there is nothing more difficult and dangerous, or more doubtful of success, than an attempt to introduce a new order of things in any state. Niccolò Machiavelli, The Prince
I pour the tea and we sip in silence. We have never had our tea together in the morning, and this break with our usual protocol imbues the ritual with strange flavor. Yes, this sudden transmutation in the order of things seems to enhance our pleasure, as if consecrating the unchanging nature of a ritual [...]