Love and compassion and understanding and empathy and hope and so many of our best selves are living things that need nurturing. These universal healers are very much like potted plants. If they are not tended to they will die. Right view, right speech, and right livelihood grow these precious gifts. When they get big […]

We bemoan the state of politics, the environment, the average American household, the workplace, college and professional sports, the education system, and virtually everything else in our lives. We tune in to Fox news or MSNBC to reinforce our view that the world is going to hell and WE are not the problem. Teachers blame

Much of deciding to live a healthier and happier life is consciously deciding to life optimistically. This likely is a foreign orientation or even a scary or blasphemous thought to many. Mea Culpa. It can be difficult to be hopeful in a world of single-digit congressional approval ratings and ongoing international genocides, but we have

There are many definitions of Wu Wei. Many of us have a feeling for what it means. For me, it is “don’t fight nature”. Equally useful for me is “action through inaction”, “Choose your battles”, “don’t be mad at a dog for being dog-like”, and “row, row, row your boat gently down the stream”. There

We have a completely misguided idea of how to become happy. The billions of dollars spent trying to convince us to buy the newest razor or sedan does not help. We see people that are famous and they seem rich and successful and happy, whether they are or not! We imagine that if we only

Too many of us spend too much of our lives angry with people, going even so far as hating some. People hate their co-workers or their former spouse. Some of us hate people who vote different from how we vote. Others hate Wall Street executives, politicians, the guy next door whose dog keeps pooping in

If we all did the numerous little things that we know feed us in mind and body we would live happier lives. Those around us would live happier lives. The world would be a better place. This is a guarantee.   Feed and strengthen our bodies. Eat more veggies. Reduce alcohol and caffeine. Minimize preservatives

To an outsider watching one of us, it would be difficult on any given day to tell if the person being watched is really living forever. So, live that way. We live forever every single day until some day we no longer do. That was not today for you or for me. It will likely

Sentient beings aren’t really that complicated conceptually. We have an instruction set (DNA) to specify chemical reactions and some sort of network of brain cells that control our actions, feelings, and thoughts (more chemical reactions). We are just a bunch of chemical reactions. While this may be rather unromantic, it is also equally encouraging. If

There is no reason to believe that there is any meaning to life. There is also no reason to think that there isn’t. It is equally valid is to consider whether there are meanings or just meaning. Why can there not be an infinite number of meanings to life? Why can there not be a