Author: Deborah Bennett

Nurturing Gratitude

Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, “A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of others, living and dead, and that I must exert my self in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.” Indeed it … Continue reading Nurturing Gratitude

Cultivating Compassion

Buddhist author and teacher, Pema Chödrön wrote, “Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.” Her words are at the heart … Continue reading Cultivating Compassion

Fitting In or Belonging?

Author Toko-Pa Turner wrote: “Our longing for community is so powerful that it can drive us to join groups, relationships, or systems of belief that give a false impression of belonging. These places of false belonging grant us conditional membership, requiring us to cut parts of ourselves off in order to fit in.” How true! … Continue reading Fitting In or Belonging?

Imagine…..

Imagine if you were to take each of the minutes you lived in any given day and put them in one of two columns – one for those minutes where you were present in the reality of the moment and the others in a column for those moments where you were lost in your imagination … Continue reading Imagine…..

In This I Trust

After experiencing some time down with illness the past few weeks and knowing we were entering the month to explore the practice of trust, I found myself frequently asking: “what does trust in a situation like this even mean”? Did I “trust” that I would get well? Yes, and yet …  And yet, as I … Continue reading In This I Trust

Every Voice Matters

It is a phrase I find myself repeating often. “Every voice matters.” Now I know what you may be thinking right now. Does every voice matter? Well ok, that’s a fair question when we consider the loud, often violent and harmful voices that are on the main stage of politics right now. For the sake … Continue reading Every Voice Matters

The Rest of the Story….

With the recent passing of President Jimmy Carter I have been thinking a lot about the stories that we tell about each other. While watching a documentary about President Carter I was reminded that even former Presidents have little control over these narratives and it made we wonder, can a story ever really be fully … Continue reading The Rest of the Story….

The Myth of When-Then

I am quite sure that, like most children, I spent most of my earliest years living in a wonderful state of presence. In fact, watching my now 1 year old granddaughter live her life I am reminded how young children possess an incredible ability to not only be present in the moment but to allow … Continue reading The Myth of When-Then