The Wake Up Call for Lawyers

I want to say I’m ok with the news, the polls, the weather, my friends, my family.  I want to say that, but plenty of times I’m just not. 
I’m anxious or impatient or fearful or just flat out exhauste…

How much effort is enough? In the law, often the answer is, it’s never enough.
That’s a burnout-answer.But it doesn’t mean we don’t have to work our tails off to do a good job.
 
Mindfulness invites us …

When I think back on being 20 and choosing to be a lawyer, there was a lot of, “why not? That seems like a cool path.” There was less of, “how will this serve?” or “will this contribute to a more har…

Behaving mindfully is not always easy. Don’t cause harm, don’t take anything that’s not mine to take, don’t be biased, don’t cloud the mind, always be kind: it’s clear what the invitation is. But for…

I have no idea how many times I say something, or write an email, or post, with irritation on my mind. Or hit the numbers for Verizon, with exasperation. I do know that when I do, the result is often…

The problem with good intentions is that they’re subjective. Plus, I may have good intentions but what ‘good’ are they if my impact is still harmful?

Wise intentions are different. Wise intentions are…

The Path to Waking Up

Each of the eight steps of the mindfulness path - the path to waking up - feels important. But the first, which emphasizes that everything we say and do matters, feels like the m…

Right now feels like a moment when I need to assert my beliefs and work very, very hard to create change. The stakes feel too high to do anything else.

At the same time, when I act like an expert not …

The birds in the trees, the light at dawn, the gorgeousness of morning: these things are all mixed up right now with dysfunctional politics, a precarious climate, and so much going on at home.

Mindful…

Each day of being relatively balanced feels to me like a day of possibility. What I notice is that when I’m balanced, when I’m really feeling human - not in survival mode, not activated, not checked …

There’s nothing I want more, really, than for things to be secure and predictable and easeful, for me and for everyone. But that’s the funny thing about being human. Nothing is secure, not even our l…

Change: in my experience, it's sometimes good, sometimes bad, sometimes welcome, sometimes super hard, but nearly always, out of my control.

And yet, when everything is going swimmingly, I forget that…

For a long time I was convinced that suffering was for other people. I thought, I have enough to eat, a nice home, a great partner and child. Where is the suffering?

 But I was missing the fundamental…

The way I see it, we have two choices. We can rail against reality and exhaust ourselves. 

Or we can find a way to leaving the room, the house, the office, the world, the moment, a little bit better e…

I feel like at this moment in a relatively long life so far, I should be able to say yes to certain things, no to others, and be able to count on things remaining relatively stable. Do you have that …

It should be easy to find someone to insult us, on social media, for example, or from among our snarkiest friends. I feel like I want to find someone every day, or let them find me, because they help…

When something or someone upsets me, I’m quick to blame. I’m slower to remember to simply sit still, with upset, anger, fear, or sorrow.

When I’m upset, sometimes I think I’m the only one who feels li…

The more I learn about mindfulness, the more I realize I’m not solving for anything. I’m just learning to stop strategizing.

The world is beautiful and full of love, and also, torn up by war, overwhel…