When we are stuck with a small-t truth, we need to feel it in its entirety. We need to get our perception into every nook and cranny.

We need to understand and feel the pain of our brothers and sisters who are feeling the same way.

And then we need to turn this pain and suffering into peace and understanding.

The meditative practice of Tonglen does this. In this post, we use Tonglen to reprogram the small-t truth of “not having enough”.

Previously, we talked about handling our feelings without hurting ourselves.
Today, we’re talking about handling our feelings without hurting others.
I hesitate to write about my children, because I want their words to be their own.
And yet, I think I can pinpoint the moment I stopped falling apart in front of  my children.
When I was 23 and my son was not-quite-3.  I found myself failing all of my courses at college.
I found that my little fledging restaurant had gone under (when a co-owner absconded with our wee, but sustainable profits).
I found …

Work is a little like Lord of the Flies.
You take perfectly nice people, put them in a stressful environment and the aggressive ones tend to win.
For the past 130 years, this mentality has been the norm.
It’s called progress, people.  Or at least that’s what they tell us.
Our Energetic Systems Know the Score
In a hostile environment, in a place that doesn’t feel like we can grow, we leave.
We stop remaining present.
Energetically, this is very interesting.
Your system  stops taking in so much junk. And you, energetically, go to a different place.
Your energetic …

In this economy, it’s hard to imagine saying, “I’m outta here.”
It’s especially hard to imagine saying that when you have to support your children.
Those little grunts costs upwards of $250,000 each to raise to adulthood.  A-ha! This is why I don’t have my sailboat.
So, your job is killing you and yet you have mouths to feed.
I need to say one quick thing: if your job makes you a really bad parent, then you need to quit your job.  You know who you are.
For everybody else
if you have to keep your …

Is your job dead on arrival? Are you just really done and there’s no coming back from there?
We are often like that doctor, the one that won’t let go and call it. The one that keeps trying to resuscitate a ghost.
Signs that your job is dead:
You are convinced that your job is killing you.
You are not sleeping well.
You are snapping at people. A lot. For months.
Your loved ones avoid you. Even the Dog avoids you.
At work, you have to remember that you can’t refer to that guy as ‘douchebag’ to …

It’s August, 2000. I’m under my desk in the space where my feet should go.
I’m under the desk with the door shut to my office and tears are streaming down my face.
I’m choking as I try to keep the tears back.
I hear one of my colleagues call my name and knock on my door.
“Bridget?”  He opens the door and I hold my breath. I hold completely still. Another colleague says, ‘Huh, she’s not here.”
The door closes again.  I wait and then when I’m sure that I’m really alone, I start …

Fierce has gotten a bad name.  When we think fierce, we think brutal, cruel, nasty, uncaring, not wise.
So, instead of saying fierce, let’s use a different term.
Intense and Unbridled
Instead of saying Fierce , let’s say Intense and Unbridled.
When can you bring your Intense and Unbridled Self to a situation?
What does that look like?
Imagine Now. Do Later.
Okay, you’ve got something coming up.  Maybe it’s a party. Or a meeting. Or an interview. Or a date.
Imagine a scene with you in it at this event.  Imagine you right now.  yeah, that’s …

It’s rainy. Again.  I have taken to wearing an old aran sweater, one that once had cables running all over it but has now been washed and felted. It looks like a stone statue where the detail has been worn away by rain.
It’s thick, and when I take it off, invariably, a cat will curl himself upon it.
So I’ve removed most of the cat hair, though there’s still some present, and also, a horse licked and chewed on the arm on Saturday. The sweater smells like sheep and something vaguely …

This morning, I was talking with God, and he said, “So, what’s the deal with you?”
Remember, every question from God is rhetorical. Every last one.
And I said, “Oh, you know, writer’s block from working on that damn accounting project.”
I’ve been spending the last year removing myself from marketing gigs, making my job as a pet psychic / intuitive guidance counselor / teacher / writer / etc.  pay for the mortgage and such.
And it’s going pretty well, but not so well that I am dropping my last big client.
So God said, …