Humaness Archives - Page 11 of 13

I’m Grateful for My Teeth

In my thirties I was alone and depressed. I was in a bad relationship; living far away from my children, living and working on the edge of Canada in the Province of Nova Scotia. I isolated myself from anyone who could or would be a friend. Dark nights, crushing days; I had no idea that life could get any better for me. I was a therapist at the time, supporting individuals and families recovering from drug and alcohol addictions. I loved my work. I loved my clients. And, because I was fairly new to the fields of therapy and

To Complete, To Heal and To Save: Four Practices to Keep Relationships Clear of Tangles

Every relationship I’ve been in with a man has had the intention to complete, to heal and to save me. I’ve been separated from my husband for nearly two years. My life is full of delightful connections with people I love, work I love to do and with the beauty that surrounds me. Truly I lack nothing. However . . . Though, I know I lack nothing, how do I be in a world, which from the very beginning of life impresses upon my imagination that without a man, a one true love, who will be with me forever and

What are Your Four Truths You Live By?

Last night, my son Zach and I watched a documentary titled Samsara. It’s a beautiful film with no voices to explain the images depicting the cycle of life, death and rebirth “ Samsara. Within this film, images of nature are woven together with images of people, cities, industry and many elements of a societies, religions and cultures. Some of the images are painful to witness, but they do portray the aspects of samsara that are part and parcel to the life cycle and the world we live in today. These have to do with what would be considered animal cruelty,

Today is the Day

“If God is such a loving God, how can he allow war, poverty and disease?” I hear this question a lot, and it inspired me to sit and write down my perspective, since I, too, wonder why things are the way they are, especially for me, on a personal level. Bad things happen to all of us, personally, professionally, to our communities, countries and on a global scale. Who’s responsible for it all? Who’s to blame? Is the right response to be angry, hateful and shaming? Is the right response to get even “ you know, an eye for an

So That’s How God Works

Life of Pi is an extraordinary movie. It takes you on a phenomenal adventure, which includes a tiger. At the end of that story, Pi provides a second adventure to consider, one that is more realistic, rational and logical “ the way his father wanted him to think. Then Pi asks his audience: "Which story do you prefer." The listener responds with "I like the story about the tiger best. And, Pi, confident in his knowing and truth, responds "That’s how God Works!" When the movie was over, I was saddened that we were brought to possibility that perhaps Pi

We Want Transformation We Just Don’t Want to Change

My colleague and friend, Maureen O’Neill, and I kibitz a great deal about what it is like to be on this spiritual journey “ one of transformation. The truth is it’s hard friggin’ work, and sometimes, it hurts like HELL. Transformation, we think, is easy. We believe that it’s something that just happens, like miracles and magic. It’s as if we have to do nothing at all, and all of a sudden “ presto-change-o, we are transformed. We imagine with that transformation that life is effortless, and that there is no more hard work to be done. Change, on the

Need I be Different?

It’s a magnificent, sunny and warm day on the Island today. Daffodils are blooming as a result of my first attempt at planting them in the cold wetness of November. I had no idea that so many would bloom and hadn’t imagined the intense beauty that blossoms in each one. After sharing some time on Skype with my daughter Elissa, grandson Andrew, son-in-law Jason and my sister Patrice, who is visiting them in Scotland, I consider what I may be missing. I think about what kind of mother I am and the choices I make that have me here on

Generating Momentum – The Art of Tending Fire

Without a doubt, what we want most for ourselves as coaches and for those we serve, is that we generate momentum towards manifesting our highest purpose and desire. Clients of mine, whose desire it is to have a thriving business, find it challenging to get out of their own way. Many of them are budding coaches who are passionate about their work, yet carry lifetimes of patterning that continually reminds them of how failure met them at every turn. Repeatedly, dreams of achievements are dashed, and they are left to their own undoing. Inevitably, the patterns of lifetimes ending in

The “Guilt-Free” Diet

Okay, so I found the diet of all diets! Obviously, by the title, you can imagine that it has something to do with being guilt-free, while engaging in any type of diet. Are you wanting to lose weight, stop spending, exercise more, quit smoking, spend more time with your sweetie, take time away from electronic companions? I get it! A guilt-free diet may be the way to go! Throughout my life, my body image has been really important to me “ the ‘image’ part is one thing, but the health that comes as a consequence of eating well and exercising

The Inside of Grief

My dog, Gracie has quite a few jobs on our 10 acre parcel of land on Orcas Island. One, in particular, is to chase the rabbits away and keep them from eating all the flowers and plants around the property. Sometimes this also means that she digs into nests and pulls out little baby rabbits and kills them. This certainly keeps the bunny population down. And, it causes me incredible grief to see dead baby rabbits strewn across the yard. I’ve come to justify this as our “ mine and Gracie’s contribution to the circle of life. I take the

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