Looking back, among the many, it seems to be ten ~ Heiraku Life continues to guide me daily, sometimes with detours and at other times with quiet reminders. My recent projects have included finally sorting through boxes from my mother’s garage. After her passing several years ago, I was able to rehome the majority of her things. Still, the mendokusai 面倒くさい, (bothersome, tiresome, or that something requires too much effort…

There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in. ~Leonard Cohen Jacob Collier,  the multi-Grammy-winning composer known for turning entire audiences into human choirs, once described it as the best advice ever received. Don’t be cool, be warm. The world is full of people trying to be cool, but the world needs warm people. It is a simple thought, yet it hit me in my core. For…

You only lose what you cling to. ~ attributed to the Buddha   We all carry things we were never meant to keep forever: an old argument replayed too many times, a version of ourselves we haven’t forgiven, a moment we wish had gone differently. The weight doesn’t come from what happened. It comes from how long we keep holding it. The story below is a simple reminder of that…

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you’ve imagined. ~Henry David Thoreau We picture a perfect life because, in our imagination, it is frictionless. But the moment discomfort appears, the fantasy collides with reality. Imagining doesn’t cost anything. But living it does: the time you never get back, the identity you have to shed,  and the certainty you trade for the unknown. That’s the price no…

You only struggle because you’re ready to grow but aren’t willing to let go. ~Drew Gerald Whenever I am at a crossroads, big or small, I  am compelled to change up my living space. It could be something simple: clean out drawers, do a deep clean, and, one of my favorites, rearrange furniture or artwork. That’s what I did this week. One of the framed pieces that I chose to…

What happened, happened and could not have happened any other way, because it didn’t. ~Peter Crone When I first read this quote, it wasn’t new to me. I recognized it. I was raised in a Buddhist home, so some version of it has been with me long before I had a language for it. The past is just that, past. Resisting what already is is futile, only adding another layer…

Set higher standards for you own performance than anyone around you, and it won’t matter whether you have a tough boss or an easy one. It won’t matter whether the competition is pushing you hard, because you’ll be competing with yourself.   ~ Rick Pitino Pinino’s words echo a universal truth: the fiercest competition is often internal, not external. There is a Japanese word, Ganbaru (眼張る), which means to persevere, continue,…

Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. ~Viktor Frankl Stoicism, originating from ancient Greek and Roman philosophies, aims to guide individuals towards a resilient, purposeful, and peaceful existence. Central to its teachings are the principles of mastering one’s reactions, acknowledging the limits of control, and embracing the…