Can You Mute The Courage Penalty?

mute the courage penalty

The courage penalty created by hierarchical human social systems has made change difficult for thousands of years. It is important to note that nature does not have the same social system of preference. Although it has its own harshness, It is a shared system of aliveness, nourishment, and well-being. The human world does not seem…

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The Dance from Anger to Empathy

anger

“My mother is driving me nuts again,” Carol tells me as we hike up to Grant Hill during one of our weekly hikes. Her comment is in response to my inquiry about how her week was going. The edge of her reply regarding her elderly mother gets my attention. Before I can say anything, Carol…

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How Is The Courage Penalty Affecting You?

courage penalty

Have you noticed how much effort goes into suppressing the natural desire of people to live well, to be themselves, and to enjoy life? We are offered a world that generates a constant diet of trauma. We are being herded over and over again into a world that wants to keep us working and slaving…

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Joy: The Benefits Of Healthy Sharing

sharing

What has happened to sharing? It seems we are all messed up on the topic. We have over-sharing, under-sharing, boundary violations that distort sharing, and all sorts of behavior that mucks up the possibilities of a natural way of community.  That may sound harsh; after all so many people get up every day despite all…

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Joy And Delight

delight

Most people think of joy as a feeling, and it is. When we make joy our anchor and compass, it brings us important benefits. The Energy Of Joy Joy is more than a happy feeling. It can be that, but it is actually a lot more. Joy is the feeling of rightness. It comes from…

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Spite: Is It Always Negative?

spite

The Spite House: Photo by Nils Huenerfuerst on Unsplash Spite is a close cousin of anger and resentment. It is a combination of resentment and defiance which make our lives and the lives of others miserable. Spite and the feuds it creates have a long history and some hidden benefits. What Is Spite? According to Dictionary: a malicious, usually…

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Have We Misplaced Surrender?

surrender

What is surrender? When you hear the word, do you cringe – even a little? Surrender is often associated with humiliation. Because war is central to how we too often view life, when we think surrender, we usually think of a defeat and a humiliation. We can too often be defeated even when we are…

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A Different Kind Of Bold

bold

Joy has many special and overlooked qualities and, as a practice, becomes a different kind of bold. Boldness and aggression have been joined at the hip for a long time. How often, when we are prodded to be bolder, is it about “getting out there” or “pushing the envelope?” How often are we asked whether…

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Release The Baggage – Meet The Real You!

baggabe

We all carry baggage from the past. We can feel it in our energy. We know it is in our minds especially when we are ruminating on something we do not understand or something that has hurt us. Many of us work with meditations of various kinds and other exercises to release the burdensome feelings…

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The Value Of Uselessness

uselessness

  Being useless feels awful. Being useful feels good, doesn’t it? It is nice to feel valued and know we are valued. It helps us to feel secure. It also means we are supported by others and welcome in the world. Is There A Stigma For Uselessness? As a highly sensitive person, I suspect that…

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