In July of this year my husband, Jess, and I took a road trip to California. We drove from Scottsdale to Los Angeles, made several stops up the Pacific Coast Highway, and got as far north as Monterey. One Sunday we stopped in Carmel for breakfast before making that winding drive along the Big Sur coast. Read more
Last Tuesday was my birthday and I started the day on a fun note being interviewed by my friend, Lin Schreiber, on her new radio show. After the show and despite the fact that it is a busy time at work, I took the afternoon off and had lunch in town at a French bistro, with a friend who was also celebrating a December birthday. We saw waiters delivering sparklers, the 4th of July kind, to a few other tables, apparently for birthday celebrations, at which point we requested ours. This little spectacle —a sparkler stuck in a lemon wedge on a plate dusted with cinnamon and paraded out for the birthday girl— delighted me to no end. Read more
December is both a wonderful and stressful month in one. At work, there is that last push to produce before the year ends and the same is true at home, where we scurry around in holiday activity. So that you don’t fall victim to a race-to-the-finish-line mentality where everything goes by in a blur, here is a simple technique you can use to have more peace and calm. Read more
As we approach the peak of the holiday season, I am reminded of the importance of creating the space to feel peaceful. One way to have peace is to do something that is grounding every day. To ground yourself is to: Read more
When I was younger, my siblings and I would ask my father what he wanted for Christmas. His answer was always the same, “Peace and quiet is all I need.” I’d look at him curiously and say, “But, Dad, you ask for the same thing every year.” Now I tell my father that I understand perfectly what he was after. Read more
“To keep a lamp burning we have to keep putting oil in it.”
– Mother Teresa
Imagine living in a time when oil lamps were prevalent? To keep the rooms lit, you would have to frequently check the oil level in each lamp throughout the house. The oil lamp is a timely metaphor for this evening, the first night of Hanukkah, which commemorates the rededication of the temple and the miracle of just one day’s oil supply lasting to light the menorah lamp for eight days. It is also the first week of Advent, during which the first of four candles within a wreath is lit in hope, anticipation, and longing for divine presence to be felt in the world. Read more