A recent interview with MysticMag - a fascinating webiste for all things holistic.

Ever wonder what “Way Opens” means? Hint: it points to “trusting in the natural unfolding of life.”

I learned a long time ago that I don't have to be afraid of fear. It's an energy, and a rather unpleasant one -- unless you're choosing a scary book or film as entertainment. It can be mild and continuous or sudden and strong, but as emotions go, it's one of the easiest to recognize. And one of the hardest to bear.

Abundance. Acceptance. Gratitude. We often talk about these qualities as something to cultivate, but the truth is, they are natural states of being. We don’t have to work hard to access them. It’s more like we need to remember them.

Weeding is just like living mindfully. The metaphor of gardening as cultivation of mindfulness is a classic and I didn’t suddenly invent it last week, but I deeply appreciate learning this dharma lesson through direct experience. There are many parallels. Here are some that I’m discovering.

Over the years I have heard statements that rang true and woke me up to reality. These are truths that seem obvious upon hearing, but also feel familiar because they are easily verifiable by direct investigation or experience. It leaves you wondering, “how could I have forgotten this?” or amazed that you’ve never thought of it in that way before. The truths that blow your mind.

The spring equinox brings an equal amount of daylight and darkness, and it’s a good time to explore balance. Learning to surf the waves of life requires a commitment to turn toward direct experience, to include whatever is arising with acceptance, to learn how to balance in the gap between stimulus and response. Equanimity develops as the other factors of awakening are cultivated, and mindfulness is the link between them all.

Two weeks into the new year, and many of us are already hitting trouble spots in sticking to our resolutions. That’s pretty typical, because deep and lasting change is not easy. The poet Rumi has some wise advice for how to stay awake and keep honoring those intentions.

If the past year is an old man, and the new year is a baby, how do you relate to babies? As a new year begins, is it possible to approach our lives and relationships like they are a baby? That stuff you went through in the past year that makes you feel like you really need to get your act together? That's your teacher, your friend, a gift.

Getting grateful shifts your perspective. Scientific evidence suggests that expressing your gratitude directly to someone, or just between you and the Universe, is the key to being a kinder, happier, more creatively engaged person. The ability to be thankful is built right into us, so we don’t need to manufactire it. Yet when we choose to practice being grateful, joy is the result.

Includes a Bodymind Experiment.