Writing and Driving and Life E. L. Doctorow once said that “writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” This passage from Anne Lamott’s book Bird by Bird came to mind while driving with my 15 year old last night. We were talking about growing … Continue reading Like Driving a Car at Night
So there I was zooming down the neural pathways and superhighways of my brain and I remembered that I’d seen somewhere that the insides of our brains look remarkably like the vastness of the universe. Continue reading The Universe Inside
In which I accidentally discover the Ridiculously Perfect Meditation Stance for a dork like me! Continue reading Monkey Brain and Geese Chatter
First there was a quiet that was deafening. My heart was washed of all the years of torment and bitterness, in an afternoon. Just gone. Daily anger, frustration, strife, vexation. Poof. And what remained echoed in its shiny cleanness. For a couple of days, that roared in my head, or maybe hummed. My thoughts sticking up like little rabbits in a field, curious, investigating, … Continue reading The Vanishing Point where Stillness Bellows
There are three kinds of silence. the first is physical, the silence of the outer world. This quiet world is a precondition for the second silence which is spiritual, the silence of the mind. Which mind, purged of distractions, prepares one for the third silence, the silence of mystical meditation. “When thought stops, words halt, and we move through light toward absolute silence.” “Without … Continue reading Stillness Shrinks Us to Our Own Size
The way I am learning to meditate, is to be still and quiet, and allow my mind to settle onto something, whatever it wants to settle onto, and keep breathing. It is a very low-key, no stress kind of meditation. I don’t beat myself up for doing it wrong, because there is no wrong way to do it. I read somewhere that given the opportunity … Continue reading Gratitude, Grace and Green Beans
For me, the challenge is balance. Perhaps my goals are too lofty. Perhaps I have too many things I’d like to accomplish in life. I want a happy family. I have a job that I adore. And I’m a writer. Each of these things is a full-time pursuit. Sometimes my scale tips towards the side of family and we are wrapped up in lots of … Continue reading Getting to the Juicy Part
