“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” ~Ian Maclaren A friend recently told me a story about her mother that stayed with me. They walk together some evenings around her mom’s apartment building—part exercise, part ritual. Her mom doesn’t enjoy small talk. When they […]

“I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.” ~Joseph Campbell I was sitting on my yoga mat with my legs stretched out in front of me. I bent forward into a fold, puffing and clenching my jaw as I extended my […]

“The opposite of belonging is not isolation—it’s fitting in.” ~Brené Brown One of my earliest memories comes from kindergarten. My mom had bought me a new pair of navy-blue corduroy pants for an event at school. We didn’t get new clothes often, so this felt important. But what stayed […]

“What will mess you up most in life is the picture in your head of how it is supposed to be.” ~Unknown I expected to get into college. I expected to have a career after a lot of hard work, and that one day I’d meet a nice man and we would get married. We would buy our first house together and […]

“You teach people how to treat you by what you allow, what you stop, and what you reinforce.” ~Tony Gaskins It was a Tuesday afternoon when I said the word that saved my sanity: “No.” Just two letters. But the weight I’d been carrying for twenty-eight years finally lifted. My phone was […]

“It is not your responsibility to figure out what someone else is feeling and why. Let go of the illusion that ‘fixing’ their bad mood will make you feel better.” ~Sarah Crosby Some years ago, I was talking to my husband on the phone. He sounded annoyed about something to do with his work, […]

“You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop.” —Rumi The last days of the year felt like the right time to let go. I stood in my backyard with twenty-five years of journals—thick notebooks filled with prayers, confessions, and late-night spirals—ready to release […]

“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” ~Lao Tzu For many years, I was deeply involved in spiritual communities—satsangs, meditation centers, ashrams, and groups focused on positivity, service, and personal growth. These places gave me comfort, community, and a sense of […]

“To live without arriving is to learn how to stay.” ~attributed to the Buddha For most of my life, I assumed that arriving was the point. Like many people, I believed adulthood would eventually deliver a clear role, a measure of security, and a sense of belonging I could point to and say, This […]

“Sometimes the person you love the most is the one who teaches you the hardest lesson about yourself.” ~Unknown I once thought that being in a relationship meant sacrificing parts of myself for the sake of “love.” I stayed when I should have left. I forgave when I hadn’t healed. I […]