Posts from the ‘Be’ Category

May Every Day Be Thanksgiving Day

May we give thanks
For the earth that grounds us
For the light that shines upon us
For the body that moves us
For the breath that calms us
For the laughter that connects us
For the tears that bind us
For all the moments, may we give thanks.

May we give thanks
For the work that challenges our minds
For the meals that nourish our bodies
For the beds that rest our muscles
For the water that washes us clean
For the conversations that anchor our relationships
For the travels that inspire our dreams
For all the days, may we give thanks.

May we give thanks
For the wrinkles formed from our smiles
For the parents who built a foundation
For the children challenging convention
For the shelter forming a home
For the moon awakening wonder
For the seasons punctuating our existence
For all the years, may we give thanks.

May we give thanks
For the arguments and the giggles
For the bright blue sky and the thick dense fog
For the openings and the closings
For the questions and the answers
For the quiet and the fury
For the joy and the pain
For this whole messy and beautiful life, may we give thanks.

May every day be thanksgiving day.

Take Your Messy, Beautiful Self Everywhere You Go

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” – Oscar Wilde

One of my fears as a parent is that my kids will grow up and want to be someone different than the beautiful, unique people they are today. After all, it happened to me. What’s stopping it from happening to them? Read more

Everyday Luxuries

“I don’t want this dinner…I don’t like brussels sprouts…I hate milk,” my children whine way too often. And bucking all expert advice about the limitations of reasoning with small children, I often can’t help but respond by telling them how lucky they are to have food on their plates at all. “There are kids in this world who don’t have any dinner at all. Or any breakfast. These kids go to bed hungry and wake up hungry, and they would be SO VERY HAPPY to have what’s on your plate. Think about that, and let me know if you want to keep complaining,” I often say to them Read more

Five Ways to Change Your Mindset

Our brains are powerful things.  Whether we like it or not, if we let them, our thoughts can dictate the course of our days, giving way to everything from joy and peace to frustration and anger.  And according to social contagion data, our joy and peace and frustration and anger then spreads to the people around us.  The good news is that we have a lot of tools that can help us shift negative thinking to positive thinking…and harness the power of already positive thoughts.  Here are a few small, simple practices you can incorporate into everyday life to keep the glass half full. Read more

On Resetting

Designing a life optimized for health isn’t always easy. On the best, shiniest, happiest days, things feel in balance – we get a workout in, fill our plates with lively greens, smooch our loved ones, and connect to a purpose beyond ourselves. And on the worst days, things feel wholly out of whack – we miss a few hours of sleep, eat junk while we’re driving in our cars, sit still, and feel scattered and maybe even a little bit frantic. It can be so easy to throw off the delicate balance of our bodies and our lives, and it can be so hard to restore a sense of peace. When we’re spinning, we need to work to regain our center. Read more

Show + Tell

Healthier people have healthier friends.  Less healthy people have less healthy friends.  Kale eating gives way to kale eating, and smoking gives way to smoking.  So asserts Nicholas Christakis, a Yale physician and researcher who is an expert in the relationships between social networks and health.  His research is compelling — leveraging the ever-increasing information we have about how people are connected to more deeply understand the nature versus nurture debate.  He has a few TED talks that are worth watching if you’re interested in learning more. Read more

Beating the Clock

Where do you come up with your best ideas?

Most likely, it’s not at your desk.  It’s not navigating to summer camp while trying to sing camp songs with the kids sitting in the backseat (not that I’ve been doing that lately, or anything).  And it’s definitely not trying to type an email and talk to your mother on the phone at the same time.  You likely come up with your best ideas while you’re swimming or walking or painting or most famously, in the shower.  In my case, the best ideas usually arrive 20 or 30 minutes into a long run. Read more