“While I continually try to improve my practice, I do my best and am contented with what I am able to attain. Even as the body ages and is able to do less, there are subtleties that reveal themselves , which would be invisible to younger or more athletic bodies. You have to create loveContinue reading “Reading: Improving with Age/Practice”
Category Archives: Quotes
Reading: Salzberg on Self-efficacy (Bandura)
“’People’s beliefs about their abilities have a profound effect on those abilities….Ability is not a fixed property…there is huge variability in it; people who have a sense of self-efficacy bounce back from failures; they approach things in terms of how to handle them rather than worrying about what can go wrong.’ Albert Bandura…..If ability isContinue reading “Reading: Salzberg on Self-efficacy (Bandura)”
Reading from Louis L’Amour and a “Danger v. Comfort Zone” tangent
“Up to a point, man’s life is shaped by environment, heredity, & movements and changes in the world about him; then there comes a time when it lies within his grasp to shape the clay of his life into the sort of thing he wishes to be . . . Everyone has within his/her powerContinue reading “Reading from Louis L’Amour and a “Danger v. Comfort Zone” tangent”
Reading: Favorite from Charles Dickens
This year, weather-wise this was not relatable until this week in Boston. “It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” – Charles Dickens, Great Expectations Notice what triggers you to attach or fight. Always aContinue reading “Reading: Favorite from Charles Dickens”
Readings: Spring Inspiration
Some recent favorites: “Do not wait for strength before setting out, for immobility will weaken you further. Do not wait to see clearly before starting; one has to walk toward the light. When you take the first step and accomplish that tiny little act, the necessity of which may be apparent only to you, youContinue reading “Readings: Spring Inspiration”
Reading from Class: “I got the Power!”
This is essentially a re-post from 6/2013. “I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of tortureContinue reading “Reading from Class: “I got the Power!””
Reading from Class: Begin Again
“Renew thyself completely each day; do it again, and again, and forever again.” – Chinese inscription cited by Henry David Thoreau in Walden We are not stuck or trapped. This can be hard to believe at times. However, the laws of change and impermanence will naturally allay any doubts over time. We can begin againContinue reading “Reading from Class: Begin Again”
Reading: Mind your business: Love thy neighbor
“Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy. That is not our business and, in fact, it is nobody’s business. What we are asked to do is to love, and this love itself will render both ourselves and our neighbors worthy if anything can.” -Thomas Merton HappyContinue reading “Reading: Mind your business: Love thy neighbor”
Reading from Class: Peaceful in the Face of Chaos
“The peace that we’re looking for is not peace that crumbles as soon as there is difficulty or chaos. Whether we’re seeking inner peace or global peace or a combination of the two, the way to experience it is to build on the foundation of unconditional openness to all that arises. Peace isn’t an experienceContinue reading “Reading from Class: Peaceful in the Face of Chaos”
Reading: Re-starting without Residue
“Often we can achieve an even better result when we stumble yet are willing to start over, when we don’t give up after a mistake, when something doesn’t come easily but we throw ourselves into trying, when we’re not afraid to appear less than perfectly polished.” – Sharon Salzberg “If we fall, we don’tContinue reading “Reading: Re-starting without Residue”