A colleague of mine moved across the country to be closer to her kids who moved out west from Long Island. She and her husband sold their house and settled in. Can you guess what happened? Her daughter-in-law got a great job in Chicago and moved. Now my friend is stuck in the desert. She misses the ...
![Collect:Minimalist, Collector, Hoarder: What Do You Collect and What Do You Reject? [Writing Yoga® Creativity Matrix Prompt #6]](https://kajabi-storefronts-production.kajabi-cdn.com/kajabi-storefronts-production/file-uploads/blogs/16720/images/166b74f-52a1-3f35-5873-a3fef3faff3_Collect_.png)
My mother collected bells. They were displayed on a wooden shelf with a mirror behind them. The collection didn't need a mirror: there were plenty of brass, glass, and porcelain ringers without a reflection. My mother wasn't a hoarder, but she did like her stuff. Lots of people love stuff. My reacti...
It's been raining for several gray days here in New York as I write this post on the word "Illuminate." Funny universe. To me its a test to prove how much intention really matters. If I set the intention to "illuminate" something in work or life, the drab day becomes meaningless and I feel much more...
There comes a point in every creative project and every creative life where whatever worked in the past isn't working anymore.
Have you ever felt stuck in a routine that no longer excites you? Or maybe you’re craving a spark, something new, something fresh that shakes things up and pushes you to g...
Think about the last time you felt truly light. Imagine a time when your mind was clear, your creativity flowed, and stress felt far away. What if you could create more of that?
Air is movement, open space, and possibility. It reminds us to release what we don’t need to make room for more of what m...
I live in a world of magic gardens, storytelling and imaginative innovation. We call this place a library. Even serious research is done through this lens. If you love your library as I do, this makes perfect sense. Many months ago, I booked Cornell Cooperative Extension to read, speak and plant see...
I can't meditate! If you can hear yourself saying those words, then the idea of sitting, just to sit, can feel like an impossible luxury. Spare time doesn't exist. (At least not for anyone I know!) Taking a moment to sit might even seem counterproductive because there’s always another fire to put ou...
Happy New Year! Does it feel like the beginning of something fabulous? Hope so!
For the school administrators, teachers, and librarians I work with, the New Year doesn’t always mean a fresh start; it often means diving back into the whirlwind of lesson plans, scheduling (all those changes!), and mo...
Even if you don't have "teacher" in your job title, you are learning something new and teaching others all the time. Think about when you get a new phone, appliance, or computer upgrade. Think about being on the phone with customer service as they try to explain why the smart lamp you just purchased...
As the New Year approaches, we often feel pressure to add more. More tasks, goals, habits, and achievements. But what if, instead of piling on, we focused on subtraction goals? Rather than creating elaborate to-do lists or ambitious resolutions, consider the power of letting go. Subtraction goals in...
Finally, the weather cooperated and New Yorkers were able to get outdoors and not get soaked. We've had many weeks of rain on the weekends so whenever the sun appears, we go to mountains, beaches and parks and welcome the warmth.
We go to the trees.
Weekends indoors were "productive" for us. We ...
For much of history, it has been tradition to burn journals of loved ones when they pass over to the other side. I would like that to happen with mine please. But what if you didn't have a choice?
I recently saw Eileen Myles speak about having their journals housed in the archives of Yale Universit...
It's never too late to go back to school! I took two graduate courses this summer, even though I have been an educator for over 20 years. Learning and teaching are inseparable practices. Plus, we all must stay current to thrive.
I became a librarian for the love of books and reading but there is li...
What does it mean to live a luminous life? This question has been tossing around my mind for many years. Being luminous is a state of being, a way of life, philosophy, health care routine, presentation powerhouse, parenting energizer, and teacher motivator. It also can put us on the fast track to he...
