"Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray."

~ Rumi

How are you holding up? Our back patio looks like an ice rink, and my news feed looks like civil war. One looks like an invitation to fun; the other to anger and despair. How do we hold these things at the same time? How do we have fun at birthday parties, and yet acknowledge the real pain so many of our fellow humans are enduring? 

This week I invited everyone to Monday Morning Yoga online since we were unable to meet in person here in South Austin. Nearly 30 of us gathered to bring our feelings and bodies to the mat. I have to say, it helped. 

When done with intention and attention, yoga becomes a moving meditation. The practice moves events, thoughts, and feelings through the mind. The movement helps prevent that energy from taking up residence, collecting residue, becoming stagnant in the body, and leading to toxicity. Essentially, it helps us digest what we ...

“…go to your inner room…”  ~ Matthew 6:6

I had a dream the other night that was just like so many I’ve had before, with one important distinction: I made it upstairs. 

I frequently dream about my house (well, it’s not my real house—it’s the one I often have in dreams) and the many rooms in it. I usually have access to the ground floor and I’ve been to the basement, but there is a second and third floor I can kind of see but can’t access. What I see is dark and empty—just wood beams and cobwebs. So when I finally made it up there recently and saw what was now inside, it was as exciting as if it were real.

The rooms upstairs were filled with light! They had curtains, couches, and beds, and I could tell people had been there. There was even a darling kitchen with a very inviting table and chairs. I remember thinking, “This is a full apartment up here where someone could live!” So of course I had to look into what this could mean. 

If you’ve ever worked with dreams and their m...

Go only as fast as your slowest part feels safe to go.

~ Robyn L. Posin

It already seems passé to say Happy New Year, as it is off to a quick and dirty start. My favorite New Years meme I’ve seen so far says, to 2026: “Thanks for the free trial. I’d like to cancel my subscription.”  It made me laugh, and it also made me reflect a bit. 

It certainly feels to me like we’re heading towards war, violence is constant, and things aren’t looking too bright on the world stage. And yet, I also sense that there is an undercurrent to all of it that is building and churning up hope. We really have yet to see where this year is going, which is why our practice of presence is ever more important. 

Practicing presence is simple and profound. When you catch yourself in your head, spinning out with your thoughts, or worried about the future regarding things you can’t control, pause and notice your breath. Take two or three deep, slow breaths as you look around the room, noticing objects an...

On my birthday last month, I decided to celebrate by walking a labyrinth. I have made a little tradition out of it because I find labyrinth walking a beautiful practice to mark time. (You can read my blog post “What’s a Labyrinth” if labyrinths are unfamiliar to you.)  I imagine myself going in at one age, and returning in the other. It’s like closing one year and opening a new one. It’s an opportunity to let go of any regrets and disappointments from the past year as I walk in the center, weave together gratitude and hope once I reach it, then open to whatever may come in the year ahead as I walk out. I’ve found it to be quite a profound and helpful ritual.

I am often working with the feeling of trust, and wanting more of it, so this year I decided to make the walk itself an exercise in deep trust. To foster this, about halfway through I closed my eyes as I continued to walk the labyrinth, whose path is lined by landscape stones on both sides. Any time I bumped into an edge stone,...

“Won’t you be my neighbor?”

— Fred Rogers

Family Weekend at the University of Iowa last weekend was a great success! Eight of us from Havia’s family descended upon her in Iowa City, where she was happy to play the part of tour guide, showing us her favorite places on and off campus. We were also introduced to some personal traditions of my brother and cousin for Iowa football games for the last 19 years. We all decked out in our black and gold, enjoyed the chilly air, and went to the Hawkeye vs Minnesota game. (Iowa won big, so that was fun!)

One University of Iowa tradition we got to participate in was recently ranked number one college stadium tradition by USA Today: The Hawkeye Wave.

At the end of the fourth quarter, 70,000+ fans, players, and students turn around to wave at the pediatric patients at the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital, located just behind the stadium. Both teams’ players stand on the field together, waving at the kids. Both sides of the stadium,...

“A good tool improves the way you work. A great tool improves the way you think.” — Jeff Duntemann

If you're in the yoga or health/wellness world very much, you'll hear the word "tools" used to describe tricks of the trade that aim to help you feel better when you need it. I appreciate the use of this word, as I have indeed collected dozens and dozens of "tools" over the years to help me foster balance, remain calm more often, and enjoy life. It's kind of a passion of mine.

But I think the word "tool" has limitations. It sounds like it's something you use once and toss back in the toolbox for the next time you need it. And this may also be true for some health and wellness tools. However, it has been my experience that the vast majority of these tools need time and attention for them to truly show you what they offer.

I prefer the word "practices." Why? Because they require us doing them. Not thinking about them, or using them, or even perfecting them. Practices, when done ...

"Practice is not about escaping life—it's about meeting it fully."

Pema Chödrön, The Wisdom of No Escape and the Path of Loving-Kindness. 

As I sit in the front room of my house, on my big comfy red chair, with my precious red heeler, Lila, sleeping on her ottoman and ignoring the view of her outside domain, I am so touched. The evening sun is lighting up the bushes and trees outside in such a lovely autumnal glow. I have some instrumental guitar music playing on Spotify, supporting my creative endeavor of writing something that matters. Or at least doesn’t suck. 

I’m basking in a moment like this, because it feels hard earned. I’ve been driven and goal-oriented since my youth, and contentment does not come naturally. 

I first learned about contentment, or santosha in Sanskrit, in yoga teacher training back in New York City, 2004, which was probably the most competitive era of my life. Just hearing about santosha, which is one of the inner practices of yoga (niyama), spark...

A baby giraffe’s life begins with a six-foot drop

— a head-over-heels tumble to the earth —

where she’s caught by tall grass, tended by her mother, and

soon begins the intrepid act of standing and walking on her brand-new, wobbly legs.

I am happily home from my Paris/Chartres trip for my Labyrinth Facilitator training, and I have to say it was a wonderful experience. Being back at Chartres Cathedral felt more like home this time. It was as if I never left! There is a beautiful timelessness there that I find very comforting. 

And yet once again, I was struck by my body’s response to the space and to the labyrinth. 

As I walked the labyrinth the first time, I couldn’t believe how shaky my legs were. Yes, it had been a journey to get there and I’m sure I was tired, but this level of shakiness was something else. From my sacrum down I felt jittery, weak, and wobbly. I knew I wasn’t going to fall – I was safe – but there was a tremble within me that spoke of new life.

Yogaś Chitta Vrtti Nirodha

Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind. 

Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 1.2

Earlier this month I went to walk the labyrinth at The First Presbyterian Church of Austin. I remember my mind was incredibly busy that day. My thoughts were just spinning around and jumping from topic to topic with zero direction. As I stepped into the labyrinth and began my journey towards the center, I patiently waited for my mind to settle. And I waited. And waited. And less patiently waited. Eventually I realized that the dull roar in my mind was just going to stay there. I couldn’t force it to quiet down. So I let it go. I paid attention to my steps and let the mental noise continue. As I got closer to the center, two questions and answers cut through like a fog horn:

What is the purpose of yoga?

 To address the needs of the body.

What is the purpose of walking the labyrinth?

 To address the needs of the soul.

This little Socratic method moment was super ...

I am getting so excited about my return to the Chartres Cathedral in Chartres, France next week! If you’ve been following my adventures these last couple of years, [blog post: Life is Messy] you know I’ve become an outspoken labyrinth enthusiast. I find this ancient spiritual practice so deeply effective, enjoyable, and revelatory, I’m telling anyone who’ll listen and everyone I meet. (Okay–maybe I’m not THAT overboard, but it’s not far off.)

I have so much enthusiasm about labyrinth practice, I just want to know more, do more, and lead. That’s why this trip is for me to do my Labyrinth Facilitator Training with Veriditas in the most well-known and well-walked labyrinth in the world; the blueprint for thousands of other labyrinths: Chartres Cathedral. 

Since you’re going to hear a lot more in this space about labyrinths and meetups and pilgrimages and events, I thought I’d answer the first main question that comes up:

What’s a labyrinth? And is it like a maze?

A labyrinth ...