On the rare occasions when my father, Mendek Rubin, spoke about the three years he was imprisoned in Nazi forced labor camps during WWII, he only shared stories about how he managed to stay alive.
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Today, I’m happy to share one of my favorite meditations from our “Take a Moment” micro-meditations series, “Rest as a Lake.” It feels almost miraculous how calm and relaxed I become in just two short minutes when I’m guided to imagine a lake and embody its serene energy.
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One of the most profound gifts of my qigong practice is how it has helped me become more aware of my breath. This awareness is incredibly empowering, because how we breathe has a dramatic impact on how we feel—and we can change our breathing pattern in an instant.
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My clearest memories of growing up in Brooklyn in the late 1960s and early 1970s revolve around food and fear. Looking back, I can see how much they influenced the direction of my life, guiding me to devote myself to endeavors that promote health and healing.
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During our recent Quest workshop, “Write Your Life Open,” we explored these simple but important questions: Where do you draw your strength from? Where do you find resilience?
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The sage Buddhist nun Pema Chödrön often reminds people that the reason we meditate is not to become good meditators—it’s to become more awake in our lives. She says, “One of the main discoveries of meditation is seeing how we continually run away from the present moment, how we avoid being here just as we are.”
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When I was fresh out of college, my husband Drew and I moved onto a small two-acre heirloom raspberry farm in Carmel Valley, California. What was meant to be a one-year pause while I applied to graduate programs in international relations unexpectedly turned into something much bigger.
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The human mind is truly extraordinary. A single image, sound, or scent can instantly transport us across time and place—back to a cherished memory, a moment of beauty, or toward a felt sense of ease and comfort. We experience this all the time without even trying…
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Looking back at 2025, one of the goals achieved that I’m most pleased about is expanding Quest for Eternal Sunshine’s library of free “Take A Moment” micro-meditations. Averaging only two minutes long—short enough to fit into even the busiest of schedules—they’ve become our most popular free “Tools for Healing” offering.
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My decision to dress up as a Valkyrie this past Halloween was inspired by attending my first Valkyries WNBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco. Sitting in the stands, I was swept up in the excitement of the sold-out arena.
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This New Year’s Eve will be the sixty-third I’ve logged in my life so far. I still feel a spark of excitement every time the calendar turns, but for my four- and eight-year-old grandsons, it’s nothing short of momentous—like a birthday, but one that the whole world celebrates together.
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Last month, I received a beautiful newsletter from my cousin Trudy Goodman, who is a Harvard-trained psychotherapist and internationally recognized Buddhist meditation teacher. In it, she offered a simple yet powerful practice called, “Steadying the Heart in Uncertain Times,” which I’m happy to share with you today.
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Trudy’s odyssey in life has been analogous to a turbulent ocean crossing filled with unanticipated, treacherous storms.
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“Who are you?” was the first question Hilary Nicholls asked me over a dozen a years ago as I lay on her treatment table for the first time. “Who are you independent of being a mother, wife, daughter, businesswoman, and all the other roles you identify with?”
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Anne Lamott once wrote, “Maturity is gaining a modicum of grace when you do not get your own way.” I like that Anne used the word “modicum,” the equivalent of a smidgeon—just a teeny, tiny bit. Disappointment is hard, no matter our age, and life is full of it.
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My exposure to spirits from other realms started early in life. Growing up, my parents were spiritual seekers in search of effective ways to mend their emotional wounds and find meaning in their lives. In 1970, when I was six, they discovered a group called the “Pathwork” whose members were devoted to learning teachings transmitted by the “Guide.”
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Today I want to share some beautiful poems written by my friend Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts—a wise man and gifted poet whom I grew close to fourteen years ago, during the final months of his wife Tey’s life. I first met Tey when I became a Zen student at the Monterey Bay Zen Center in 1993. She warmly embraced me when I felt like an excluded outsider amidst the tightly knit group of seasoned students.
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The first official day of summer began yesterday, which makes it a perfect time to get outside and renew our connection to Mother Earth. Being in nature brings peace, beauty and healing into our lives. It slows us down, calms us, and helps us feel connected to something greater than ourselves—all key ingredients in fostering optimal emotional and physical health.
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For the past few weeks, I’ve been working with a piece of advice from Martha Beck: “What leaves you feeling bad, do less of. What leaves you feeling good, do more of.” This seemingly simple suggestion came from an article Martha wrote for Oprah Daily, “Five Pieces of Advice Everyone Ignores (but Shouldn’t!)” Martha says that this one suggestion is “all you really need to find your destiny, form loving relationships, achieve optimal health, and have the best life story in the bingo parlor during your golden years.”
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Today I’m sharing an article I wrote for Spirituality & Health magazine about the many benefits qigong offers, especially in relation to stress management. Because Qigong enhances my life in so many ways, I want to share its gifts with as many people as possible.
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