From July 2016 Newsletter

It's time to practice.
It's time to practice LOVE.
It's time to practice LOVE and KINDNESS.

Inhale love, exhale fear.

Will you join me?

Every few days or so I find myself in the redwoods with my pup.  

I make the effort to drive through the busy hub bub of bay area traffic to stand, like a tiny ant, amongst these majestic powerful trees.  From the moment I step into the grove my heart rate lowers, my facial expressions soften and I'm able to breathe a little deeper without even trying.  

Being here shifts my perspective, softens my rough edges, and wakes me up.  I am reminded that, just like mama redwood tree, I too am an integral part of this thing called Life, and I find a sense of peace + belonging.     

When the outside world points us towards fear, how might we remind ourselves that underneath our layers of rough bark and hardened human habits, at our core, at our center, at the root of us All is LOVE!  

How will you choose to soften your rough edges to see the love in what surrounds you?  How might you make your contribution to the world with love?

I am reminded of Metta, a buddhist meditation of loving-kindness:
WHAT IS METTA?

  • Metta is an attitude of recognizing that  all beings that are capable of feeling, can feel good or feel bad, and that all, given the choice, will choose the former over the latter.
  • Metta is a recognition of the most basic solidarity that we have with others, this sharing of a common aspiration to find fulfillment and escape suffering.
  • Metta is empathy. It’s the willingness to see the world from another’s point of view: to walk a mile in another person’s shoes.
  • Metta is the basis for compassion. When our Metta meets another’s suffering, then our Metta transforms into compassion.


You are invited to take a few moments today (and each day) to practice Metta, loving-kindness.  


Find a place to sit comfortably and close your eyes.

Begin with an offering to yourself (silently within), "May I be peaceful.  May I be happy.  May I be safe.  May I be free."  

Then visualize extending your offering to another (perhaps someone who challenges you),  "May you be peaceful.  May you be happy.  May you be safe.  May you be free."  

And lastly, to All Beings, "May all beings be peaceful.  May all beings be happy.  May all beings be safe.  May all beings be free."

Notice how your body + mind reacts when shifting your focus towards love and kindness. 

How does practicing loving-kindness contribute to your well-being, and to your experience of Life?

Sending waves of Love + Light,

Harmony