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“In a world of intense debates and polarized views, it’s tempting to close off, armor up, and defend our positions. But practicing compassionate curiosity allows us to stay open without abandoning our beliefs. It doesn’t require us to be defenseless or give up our values. Instead, it invites small, humanizing gestures.” There’s no shortage of opportunities…

 “Mindfulness trains us to respond, not react, with awareness and discernment. To scratch or not to scratch? That’s up to you. To notice the itch (literal or metaphorical) and choose the response is the practice.” At 21, I ended up at a 10-day meditation retreat in snowy New England. My practice was minimal, but I was…

“When I started meditating, I had been able-bodied, but things had changed. I was still figuring out my relationship to this new situation while I deepened my practice. What happens when the body can no longer comply with the rigidity of stillness?” I remember the first time I was asked to be the timekeeper for…

“There is nothing about us fundamentally that precludes us from a meditation practice. Anything and everything about us as human beings can be worked with in our practice.” As a teacher, I am always fascinated by the obstacles people feel stand in the way of a meditation practice. And, as a practitioner, of course, I…

I have an overly sensitive smoke alarm for my nervous system. And honestly, I’m kind of grateful for it. It’s always on the lookout, ready to alert me whenever something feels off. Unfortunately, sometimes it goes off for the tiniest things — like sending an email to the wrong person, running a little late to…

I’m perimenopausal, and combined with being neurodivergent, it’s made organization and communication comically difficult. There are the classic “why did I come into this room?” moments a few times a day, but also the struggle of trying to get thoughts, which feel clear initially, to pass through the dense fog of shifting hormones and still…

We casually toss around the words “freedom” and “liberation” all the time — especially in a world where rights are constantly under threat, and we can live stream global atrocities and unfathomable devastation all day every day. Of course, everyone wants to be free. And as “liberation” becomes a buzz word in Buddhist, Buddhish, activism,…

One common thread in almost all my interactions with students and colleagues alike is the heaviness of this moment in time. More than ever, my sessions are addressing a kind of existential heaviness and sadness. It can feel so hard, maybe even impossible, to stay openhearted amidst such global hostility, devastation, and heartbreak. Over the…

For me, meditation practice often feels like being responsible for a kindergarten class on a field trip to a science museum. My mind is curious, excitable, and easily distracted. And I’m training to be the ever-patient, caring adult in the room, guiding my distractible thought-children back to the present moment with gentleness and love. In…