Suffering

"Sometimes when we suffer, we blame another person — our partner, our son, our daughter, our parents — as the cause. But when we look deeply in mindfulness we can see that they too are suffering. We see that our enemy is not the person. It is the seed of despair, anger, frustration, or fear in us." – Thich Nhat Hanh

Live Fully Now - Alan Watts

Taking care of our 'self'...

"It is astounding how much the immune system is strengthened by reducing daily mental stress levels with either visualization or meditation. The other great tonic for the immune system is love—loving ourselves as well as others.”   ---Dr. Bernie Siegal

People discuss my art and pretend to understand as if it were necessary to understand, when it's simply necessary to love.   

Claude Monet

Winston Churchill said:

Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.

Us

A human being is part of a whole, called by us the ‘Universe,’ a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.

ALBERT EINSTEIN

The Power of Love

Where love rules, there is no will to power; and where power predominates, there love is lacking. The one is the shadow of the other.

Carl Jung

"A Good Day" With Brother David Steindl-Rast

One can overcome the forces of negative emotions, like anger and hatred, by cultivating their counterforces, like love and compassion.   ---Dalai Lama

Being an optimist

“I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.”  -Nelson Mandela

Knowing You...

What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we are not able to cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves? This is the most important of all voyages of discovery, and without it, all the rest are not only useless, but disastrous.

THOMAS MERTON

Excellent Video on Depression

Top 5 Cures for Winter Depression

TOP 5 Cures for Winter Depression 
#1 Eat protein before noon. 
Researchers believe that keeping seratonin at healthy levels can alleviate depression, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, panic, and even excess anger.  Eating protein in the moring ensures that our bodies have the building blocks needed to make the amino acid tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin.  Tryptophan works best when consumed in conjunction with a small bit of carbohydrate, such as a scoop of quinoa, a handful of nuts, or a few tablespoons of vegetables.   High protein breakfast ideas.
#2 Supplement vitamin D-3, magnesium, B-complex, and fish oil.  Adding these supplements to your routine in the dark months of winter can do much to alleviate symptoms of depression.  Exposuring skin to the sun throughout the winter in northern climates is nearly impossible.  Vitamin D3 is a fat-soluable vitamin that requires a synthesis from exposure to sunlight as well as intake from the diet.  Salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna and eggs are good sources of vitamin D3, as are beef and liver.  Vegetarians are more prone to D3 deficiency. 

#3 Drink sunny tea & take herbs. Drinking a daily tea of flowers can bring a little sunshine into your home in the winter.  I recommend making a tea blend of equal parts of chamomile, lemon balm, and linden.  Steep four tablespoons of the blend in a quart of hot water, cover, and set aside for 20-30 minutes.  Strain and drinking warm flower tea throughout the day.  Following this method is an excellent way to improve sleep, reduce stress, and uplift your mood throughout the winter months.  Herbs such as St. John's Wort (see below) and Albizzia flower are also benefitial for low-level depression.  Learn more about natural support for depression, anxiety, or sleep issues.

#4 Learn to love outdoor exercise.  Fresh air and exercise have both been shown to improve symptoms of minor depression.  Combine the two with outdoor exercise.  Hike Oaks Botton or Forest Park, climb Mt. Tabor, walk to a yoga class, ride your bike to the grocery store, run the stairs up to your home, or take your dog out for a game of frisbee.  If you already exercise at a health club, make a point to take a few laps around the block as a warm up for your class or work out.  Most of all, get outside, breath deeply, have fun, and dress for the weather!

#5 Practice gratitude.  Studies from practice of positive psychology show that there is a huge benefit to keeping a journal by your bed and recording what you are grateful for every night.  Doing this for a week can cause improvement of mood for six months!  There are two parts to this practice: feeling grateful and expressing it.  What are you grateful for?        (From Daily Nectar)

How to release anger...

Is there someone in your life who is REALLY getting on your nerves? Are ready to explode at them? Before you do, here's an anger release technique I've been using for over 15 years. The power of it never ceases to amaze me. It works.

Things You'll Need

·         Pen, Paper, Quiet Time

Instructions

o    1

Find a quiet spot, get pen and writing paper. Don't skimp on size or quantity-you don't want to run out of paper and you DO want a large enough writing surface on which to vent.

o    2

Set a timer for ten minutes or place your watch nearby. Begin writing-pour your wrath, your frustration, your bile about this person onto the page. DO NOT STOP YOUR HAND, DO NOT STOP TO THINK-these are the keys to this exercise. Then when the time is up, put away the anger-soaked pages. Go about your day, no need to explain what you just did.

o    3

Day Two: Find your quiet place again, get out the pages your wrote the day before and read the entire thing, word-for-word. Set your timer again and go for another ten minutes. Same thing, keep that hand moving with no stopping. Then put the pages away again.

o    4

Day Three: Read over the previous pages and then one last time, write like crazy for ten minutes. Put it all away.

o    5

Day Four: Read the entire piece and then find a place where you can SAFELY burn it. As it burns, envision your rage being released. As the smoke billows away, let your anger go with it.

o    6

Now with a clear head and your bags emptied of rage, you can have a talk with the person. If it's still needed. I've had the experience of not even needing to talk, having realized all of the issues were mine. But if there are things to discuss, at least you can talk about them knowing what's your stuff and what is the other person's.

Read more: How to Do an Anger Release | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2016223_do-anger-release.html#ixzz2I3nAENHR

Despair

“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always.” 
― Mahatma Gandhi

Meaning

It's an old clip from a great thinker and I needed inspiration.  You see when we let the world around us begin to control our thoughts and influence our feelings we get sick.  I got sick.  I let the hurt and anger around me change my focus.  When we do that we lose our sense of meaning and our bodies break down.  I am resting now and am inspired by the wise sage Frankl.  I hope you are as well.  Peace.  TJS

Living in Fear

Hate and fear are destructive ways to view the world. From residential school, mass murder in Mexico, the Holocaust all the way to 911 much of the world lives with hatred and fear. But today on September 11th I believe we need to live by hope and love. To conquer violence with peace and to match hatred with love. It begins with the little things. How we thank the cashier at the grocery story, approach the stranger on the street, or respond to an angry driver. The little things create who we are and how we approach life. So today, with great respect for those who died, we remember 911 and pray for a more caring world. As the Dalai Lama has said, "my religion is kindness." Me too. TJS.

I have a dream.....

Few people have had as great an impact as Martin Luther King Jr.  WHY?  Because he believed in goodness and the equality of all people.  He risked all of who he was to bring goodness to people.  I have a dream........that all of us would live in such a way as to create positive change.  To help people walk, to find food for those who need it, to bring laughter to those who are oppressed.  Listen to Martin Luther King Jr's speech and marvel in the sunshine of hope.

Drug Destruction

Drugs are destroying thousands of young people everyday.  We need to start a discussion.  Therapist to client, patient to doctor, inmate to officer about the depth of destruction drugs are causing.   Hope comes from the spirit of compassion as found in gentle conversations of hope.   TJS

When stuff matters.....

Last night I had the opportunity to teach an advanced Addictions Theory class from LaRonge, Sk. It was wonderful! We talked about why our children are struggling with addiction, we shared personal stories about our own addictions and we shed some tears. These are brave women who not only work in the field of addictions but have survived addiction. We spoke of the divide between First Nations people and non-First Nations people and we watched a challenging video about residential schools. Two things stood out. First we are all connected through our brokenness and second, addictions affect all of us; no matter what our skin colour is. Stuff matters when real honest folk get together and dream, share and cry about what is happening in our communities. Keep up the great work in the north! TJS