Dr. Rosie Kuhn Archives - Page 5 of 10

I Wonder What You See?

This morning I received a beautiful email from friend my Jeff Otis, whose home is also on Turtleback, a little bit higher than mine, with a view that is more open and expansive. In this email, Jeff writes: "Sometimes when I look out my office window, like right now, I wonder, ‘Can Rosie see the moon?’ Or, the other day when the golden afternoon light was painting Mt. Woolard, ‘Can Rosie see the beautiful light?’ I sometimes wonder what Rosie can see.” I was deeply moved by his wonderings, and by his sharing these wonderings with me. Rarely do we

Letting Go of the Belief that there is a Guarantee

I recently read an article about His Holiness the Dalai Lama, written by Stephan Talty. Stephan describes the life of this man: how he was taken away from his family early in his childhood, how he had to study and meditate, and live a life that he did not choose for himself. His country, Tibet, was taken over by China and he was forced to go into exile. Now in his 80’s, he has been given many awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize. Stephan says about the Dalai Lama: “He thinks like a man that is guaranteed nothing.” Reading this

All Work and No Play-Who Me?

I’m a helper kind of person. It makes me happy to assist others in ways that makes them happy.In my forties, I sailed on a 93-ft schooner for two years. To run such a vessel it takes collaboration and team work. I was really good at that. If there was something to be done and I could do it, well, I did it! I was happy to help and it was fun to work together for the betterment of all. However, I realize that I continually put aside my own projects and tasks in support of other people’s projects; the

The Potentiality of No Buts

I woke up this morning by Gracie tapping her little furry paw on my chest. She’s ready for the day to begin – I’m not. I feel into the sense of lacking – my orientation in life is that I’m always lacking something – what is it this morning? (Can you imagine waking up next to this person who is always lacking and anticipating a day created from lack – not fun, right?) And this is what inspired this writing. Cool, eh? I’m graced with the ability to cultivate greater degrees of awareness regarding how I’m choosing what I choose.

The Anguish and Agony of Unrelenting Resistance

I have a client, Max, who in this moment finds himself in a life that is unmanageable. Regardless of where he is – at work, at home, in his truck driving between home and work – he is facing what feels like cataclysmic consequences. It is like he is attempting to walk through a field of land mines: whatever step he takes, regardless of the direction, it will inevitably result in a Ka-Boom! . . . . It is the end of pre-season for football. The athletes who have put their careers on the line to be chosen as one

Artist’s Block

Artists are courageous beings. They begin with a blank slate – a sheet of music, an empty canvas, a block of marble, a slab of clay, an empty stage. There is nothing but the desire to follow the impulse to express itself to itself. Humans, each and every one of us, are after all courageous beings – we are always and everywhere artists. We approach each day as if we know what will be created and experienced. The truth is we never know. We live into a pretending, and even in that we are creating a work of art. This

The Everyday Gurus Among Us

John is a Guru – not that he would recognize himself as one. He is in his mid 80’s, retired, and lives with his wife Eleanor. When looking at John, you wouldn’t notice anything special about him, other than he is very tall, and when he smiles he lights up the room. He doesn’t talk the spiritual talk, nor would he consider himself to be walking a path of spirituality. Yet, I find that when I’m around John, I’m relaxed, peaceful, and I’m not inclined to do anything other than just sit in his presence. Hendrick is another Guru. There

Aging – What’s the Point?

When I think about the millions of people who are in their 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s, I wonder what brings fulfillment to their lives. As they disengage from the external world, by choice or by circumstance, most will question reality, much like Scarlett, Martin and Thomas do. “When I was young,” started Scarlett, who is a beautiful, vivacious 80 year old, “everything mattered: What I looked like, what I wore, who I dated, where I lived, how many children I had, where they went to school. Everything mattered! I enjoyed waking up with a sense of purpose. Now I

Victims of Life’s Circumstances – Or Not!

Francis, a beautiful, creative woman and long time Island resident, came to my work place the other day. “I’ve been reading your articles on aging and dying in Orcas Issues, and you know,” she said with a wee bit of disdain in her voice, “aging isn’t all fun and light – sometimes there’s anger and hate. I’ve been dealing with hearing loss for a long time. My memory is deteriorating and I’m afraid that I’m losing my mind. I’m living with a lot of pain. I’m alone more often than not, and I’m angry about all of this. Sometimes I

Dying – The Final Big Adventure!

We die a thousand deaths within one lifetime. We experience ourselves in untold numbers of transitions. We face the unknown at every stage of life, and it appears as though most of us have survived. There is the deconstruction of our childhood as we immerse ourselves into puberty and adolescence; we leave behind adolescence when we choose careers, marriage, families – arenas of life where we grow our willingness to be accountable for our words and our actions. The death of innocence occurs over and over again, as reality shows us the ugly, the horrific, and all that has us

Tag: Dr. Rosie Kuhn