“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?”
Read MoreIt’s hard to believe that the holiday season is already upon us. It arrived so quickly for me this year, and many of my friends feel the same way. Although the holidays are supposed to be extra-joyful, they can also up our stress levels for a myriad of reasons, including disrupted routines, taxing travel, difficult family dynamics, excess food and drink, financial pressure, extra commitments, increased socializing, heightened emotions of grief and loneliness, and even the perceived pressure to feel upbeat and happy.
Read MoreI live on a farm on the central coast of California with two small groves of towering redwood trees that I visit each morning when I walk my dogs. I love to stand amid the trees, my head tilted up, enjoying the view of the sky through their branches. I often lean back against a tree, tuning into its strength before turning around to hug its thick bark. My arms would need to be much longer to fit all the way around the circumference of these giants. It makes me feel like a young child embracing a beloved grandparent many times my size—comforted and protected.
Read MoreWith the first official day of winter less than one week away, I’ve been reminiscing about growing up in Brooklyn, where seasonal changes were dramatic compared to my current home in Northern California. As a young girl, I eagerly waited for temperatures to drop below freezing so my parents could take me and my sister ice-skating in Prospect Park.
Read More“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?”
Read MoreAs a New York City kid who moved onto a small heirloom raspberry farm in Carmel Valley right after college, I quickly fell deeply in love with working with the soil and living in sync with the rhythms of nature. Being outside most of the day, using my body rather than my mind to accomplish the tasks at hand, brought me a level of peace and wellbeing I hadn’t ever experienced before.
Read MoreWinter marks another completion around the sun—a perfect occasion to contemplate what brings us the most joy and nourishment. Just like pruning dormant trees in the winter removes damaged branches and overcrowding to yield a healthy and bountiful crop come summer, winter can summon us to slow down and think about how reduce what is depleting and unnecessary in our lives so we can focus our precious time and energy on creating more ease, happiness and fulfillment.
Read MoreMid-September—how I love this time of year! As someone who naturally wakes with the morning sun, I’m sleeping later with the longer nights. I enjoy how dusk arrives not too long after dinner, giving me plenty of time to settle down before bedtime. The days are still warm, but the nights are beginning to have a pleasant crisp chill that freshens the air.
Read MoreA few weeks ago, I took a haiku writing class with one of my favorite authors and teachers, Natalie Goldberg. One of the prompts she gave us was to write ten haiku about summertime in five minutes, but to convey the season without ever specifically naming it. What a lovely exercise!
Read MoreThis week marks the one year anniversary of the publication of Quest for Eternal Sunshine—A Holocaust Survivor’s Journey from Darkness to Light, a book based on an unfinished manuscript my father, Mendek Rubin, left behind when he died in 2012. The four years I spent researching and completing the book transformed my life in significant and unexpected ways.
Read MoreThe most basic lesson I learned when I first became an organic farmer was that the seeds we water are the ones that grow. This isn’t only true for lettuce, arugula and carrots; it’s also true for weeds, which wait patiently in the soil for the chance to spring to life.
Read MoreIn addition to working hard to affect transformation in the “real world”—getting people to vote, stand up against injustice, and help those in need—I’ve grown to believe that we can also be powerful changemakers in the energetic realms by amplifying the love in our hearts and sowing much-needed seeds of positivity. Visualization, done together in big groups to magnify the impact, may actually be able to function as a type of “spiritual elevator” for us right now.
Read MoreI will never forget how I first met Hilary Nicholls. Twelve years ago, I ran into a friend who was in the midst of a heartbreaking family tragedy. But instead of appearing pained and exhausted, my friend was literally glowing. She looked at me and said: “I just had an incredible session with a woman named Hilary Nicholls. She wouldn’t let me pay her, but she told me I would be sending someone to her. I think that someone is meant to be you.”
Read MoreWhat an exciting day! My father’s remarkable life story and wisdom are now being shared with the world. I feel immensely grateful that Mendek devoted his life to healing his trauma and awakening to his true nature, and then spent a decade documenting his quest so we could learn from his revelations and wisdom.
Read MoreRemembering to be grateful for this moment—appreciating what is happening right now instead of constantly striving to get exactly what we think will make us happy—is an important lesson I learned from my dad. When I do this, the world is as my father often described it: an exceptionally beautiful and magical place.
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