Several months ago I wrote a blog about pressing the "send" button on my manuscript for Children of the Stars. That seems like lifetimes ago. Almost nothing has captured my attention or focus but the work of finishing this book. I am almost there. The proofs will be back in...

As I reflected on Steve Jobs passing last evening, I was saddened that a man of such vibrancy and accomplishment had passed from our presence at such young age. I wondered about Steve Jobs the husband, father, friend? It is a different kind of mourning for those close to him...

I love homemade latkes during Hanukkah. They are a reminder of the miracle of the oil that lasted not one, but eight days after the re-capture of their Temple by the Jews many centuries ago. But this year, I was praying for a modern miracle -- making a good potato...

It's Thanksgiving. Once again, lifestyle magazines are offering "tips" for navigating the holiday season. You know, making perfect decorations, gift-wrapping shortcuts, holiday menus and recipes galore, or creating new family traditions and rituals.

The overall message of this barrage of "useful" information is that we, mostly women, can "do...

We approached our Italian holiday and family wedding with some trepidation... one of our traveling companions had celiac disease . That means that he could not eat anything that contained gluten which includes anything made with regular wheat flour, barley or rye. It is not an optional...

There is much to celebrate about this sweet afternoon on Martha's Vineyard. There is a steady cool breeze from the ocean carrying the sounds of oak leaves dancing and heavy surf crashing -- a power I can feel deep in my bones, invigorating every cell. The sun is filtered by...

We had just begun the second leg of a two day journey, having stopped for the night in Reading, PA. I was just getting back into the rhythm of the road when I saw the billboard. It seemed like remnants of last night's restless sleep, the surreal images of a...

After /no-impact-project-week-pa_b_295287.html ">No Impact Week, I continued to observe some kitchen habits of mine and thought I'd share some simple routines that reduce the use of resources while preparing meals. By definition cooking burns fuel and resources. It's true that just eating raw food would significantly lower our carbon...

When I received my Guide for participation in Huffpo's No Impact Week, I opened it with some trepidation. What had I gotten myself into? I conjured up visions of juggling groceries in reusable string bags on bicycles while wearing multiple layers of thrift store fashion. In other...

Every time you surf the web or pick up a magazine there seems to be something about meditation practice, its benefits and why you should be doing it. And yet you resist undertaking this currently trendy road to nirvana, weight loss, treatment for depression, and stress -free, healthy living. Let's...

Just over a year ago, I posted my first column for Huffington Post called Putting Life on Pause:Three Mini-Meditations for People Who Don't Have Time to Meditate. It addressed ways to incorporate some aspects of stress reduction and meditation practice into small moments of our lives. Here are some...

Some days are like a running a slalom- exhilarating, challenging and satisfying. Other days, we seem to hit all the road blocks or our mind naturally is drawn to the one thing that we did not think went so well. That one thing, those little missteps sudden loom large in...

I was reading a food reference book just the other day to see if I could find any proof that chocolate is an aphrodisiac. Next to me sat a bag of chocolate chips from which I was popping an occasional single chip for inspiration. I came across the following,...

Hope, This Morning's Dream

I'm not twentysomething -- not even close. But I am fortunate to know a lot of bright, sweet, beautiful and talented people who are. At the beginning of this New Year, I offer these thoughts for all of you twentysomethings out there.

You are in a major life...

"You work in the happiness industry!" he said excitedly, morning coffee in hand, as he peered over the New York Times article, "Even if You Can't Buy It, Happiness Is Big Business". I thought about how to incorporate that on my business card. It certainly had a nice ring....

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more... it can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend." - Melody Beattie

Thanksgiving is a quintessentially American holiday, and not surprisingly so. From our beginnings...

In a recent meditation class a parent brought up how he was undergoing a great deal of external stress and finding it hard to do everything to support the busy and challenging level of activities of their teenage daughter. There was a collective sigh emanating from the other parents in...

Okay. The election is over and we reluctantly or eagerly head back to some older routine, perhaps -- like work, play, shopping, reading fiction, exercise, sleep. It has been a relentless process, sandwiching real life between polls, debates, rallies, canvassing and just worrying. With the advantage of 20/20 hindsight, let's...

In a post just a few weeks ago, Six Spiritual Principles for the Politically Perplexed, I suggested that political passion need not divert us from a spiritually directed life and vice versa (i.e. no hate mongering, becoming informed and working for the issues that matter to you, etc.). Who...