The Secret Ingredient to Growth: Mixing New Ideas Into Your Projects and Life

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...

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Taking Time to Grow a Dream with Some Magic Seeds at Your Library

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...

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Why it is Hard, but Necessary to Sit. Yes, I'm talking to You, Parents and Educators

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...

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3 Ways to Embrace the “Rooting” Phase in Your Creative or Personal Life [Writing Yoga® Prompt #2022: The Opportunities of Unseen Action]

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 ...

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How to Craft Your Own Instruction Manual for a More Positive Outlook [Writing Yoga® Prompt #2006]

The cranky man on the supermarket line has a lot to say about you and the terrible state of the world. Everything is going to "hell in a handbasket." The lines on his face detail decades of serious frowning. When someone he knows says, "Hi, how are you today?" The man replies, "Could be better" and ...

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Valentine's Day Self-Care with Journal Writing, Mindfulness and a Good Book!

What does your Valentine's Day look like?  Maybe you are having an overpriced meal with someone special or perhaps you are staying home with the cats and reading a page turner. This holiday can be rough or wonderful depending upon where you are in life. 

What I love about mindfulness practices and ...

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A Word for Every Teacher and Student at the Start of the New Year: Abundance

Our principal asked us to pick a word at the start of the school year. The word would be our North Star to guide our goals, inform our lessons, and inspire us to do great work. School initiatives sometimes fall away as the year progresses, but a good administrator won't let that happen.

She didn't ...

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10 Journal Writing Ideas To Get You Writing! [Writing Yoga® Prompt #2001]

After working with thousands of students over the years, I know for certain that most people believe they do not have enough time, talent, or energy to live the life of their dreams.  I also know it's just not true!

Keeping a journal helps us to consider our deepest desires, dreams, goals and chall...

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Now That’s Creepy! A Child Hidden in a Tree at the Ringling [Writing Yoga® WritingPrompt #208]

It wasn’t the golden trimmings or the opulence of the mansion that struck me. It was the child strapped between roots, light hitting just the right way to reveal what nature had tried to hide.

The Banyan tree took over, growth by growth. A statue of a child is hidden inside it, on an estate that wa...

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