I’ve had two conversations with complete strangers in the last few weeks that have stuck with me. This seems to happen more and more these days, perhaps a sign of increasing openness and curiosity on my part. It’s a good thing. I’ll share about one of the exchanges today and the other next weekend. A few nights ago, I ended up speaking with a woman who’s a generation above me; she has a daughter about my age. We got to talking about work….

A yoga teacher of mine introduced me this week to Mark Nepo’s wonderful meditation on “the art of facing things.” This is from Nepo’s The Book of Awakening, which I haven’t actually read. I plan to get a copy of the book soon, but in the meantime, I found the passage online. Please forgive any inaccuracies that I might have included in transcribing it. I’m going to share the whole thing, because Nepo’s central metaphor is most powerful in its entirety: Salmon have…

I saw a post by psychotherapist Helen Marie on Instagram this week that I loved. It’s titled “a little guide to glimmers.” Helen Marie writes, Glimmers are the opposite of triggers. She goes on to explain them this way: they are tiny moments of awe. they spark joy & evoke inner calm. they send cues of safety to our nervous system… our body responds with positive energy. they allow us to feel hope when lost… once we start embracing them it can become…

The past few weeks have been full of work challenges. It feels as though I’ve grown professionally in a very short period of time, which is a good thing, even though it hasn’t been easy. This week presented me with so many moments in which I thought, “I can’t do this.” Regardless, I had to do whatever thing was in front of me, so I did. My efforts were definitely imperfect, but the important thing was that I stood by my responsibilities as…

Earlier this week, my anxiety seemed to be through the roof. I couldn’t really figure out why, and I didn’t spend much time trying. Sometimes my anxiety is connected to an event or occurrence or deadline that’s stressing me out, but sometimes it’s like weather patterns, moving in and out with a mind of their own. When my anxiety is heightened, literally anything can become something to worry about. If I have nothing to worry about, my anxiety will create a reason. I…

Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to see Jessica Chastain perform the role of Nora in A Doll’s House. She was incredible, and the production is stylish and powerful. The ending, in particular, is staged in a remarkable way. It was quite something to watch Nora’s evolution of reactions—first horror, then understanding, and finally, conviction—as she comes to realize that her seemingly comfortable middle class life has in fact functioned as a cage. This particular production encourages the audience to remain aware of…

On Friday, I looked up the Merriam-Webster definition of the word “grace.” The word has many meanings, and I think that I was fortunate enough to experience most of them in the past week. I received grace, the quality or state of being considerate or thoughtful, from dear friends who helped me when some painful memories unexpectedly surfaced. I experienced grace, a reprieve or temporary exemption, when the suffering I experienced as a result of those memories abated more quickly, and with more…