Last week I was on a 6-day Silent Meditation retreat with my teachers Sarah and Ty Powers. I love being silent for an extended period of time. It clears my mind and reconnects me with myself. During one of my meditations my 7-year old nephew...
Have you ever wondered, while standing in front of the cool section at the grocery store, why organic fermented sauerkraut is so expensive? Try making it yourself, and you will understand why. Since there is only so much raw red cabbage that you can eat,...
I am not a fan of making resolutions. I don’t make New Year’s resolutions, I don’t write big This Is Where I Should Be in Five Years plans, and I won’t even have a fixed plan for my day if I don’t have any appointments...
In my previous blog I wrote about the importance of cultivating Mindfulness. We need to train our mind to not attach to our outer circumstances, in order to find true freedom. Each moment brings us the liberty to choose how we relate to it. However,...
On Tuesday we celebrated Independence Day (4th of July) in the Unites States. Today is His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday (July 6). Two reasons to reflect on what freedom really means. For some people freedom means they can say and do exactly what they want....
There are two kinds of people: those who like to be quiet and those who like to talk. But even some of the people who like to be quiet look at me glass-eyed when I suggest doing a Day of Silence, or even going on...
As the world seems to move faster and faster, fueled by a never ending stream of information that is constantly available through our mobile devices, there is a need to slow down. Even in people's yoga practice - that is intended to relax the body and calm the mind...
The beginning of the New Year inevitably brings up the suggestion we should start with a clean slate. For many people this is the time to resolve to be “better”: eating better, working out more, watching less TV, starting a yoga practice, beginning each day...
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of attending the world’s first Inner Peace Conference. Two days of yoga, meditation and lectures with a focus on creating - and maintaining - inner peace, offered in four churches and the former stock exchange in Amsterdam....
I find food to be fascinating. No one can do without, yet I don’t think there is anything as controversial as food (ok, maybe politics…). Should food be vegetarian, gluten-free, kosher, halal, GMO-free, sugar-free and/or fat-free? Ask ten people and they will probably all give...