In just over one month, I will be testing for my aikido black belt. I’ve learned so much in my seven years of training and it feels like I have so much more to learn in preparation for this exam. My Sensei reminded me of this video clip which I had shared with him and his instruction is for me to watch this and to use it as a reminder of flowing with ease and grace. Turn off my intellect and my internal critic and allow my body to express its wisdom and grace. And maybe, as I learn to do this in aikido, it can become a way of living with more ease and grace in all parts of my life.
FollowFaith
Faith is not belief in spite of evidence but a life in scorn of the consequences.
~ Clarence Jordan
Strength & Rigidity
Strength and rigidity are not the same thing…
The ability to blend and flow without losing center is the manifestation of strength.
~ a quote posted at Takemusukai Dojo
This quote seems to encompass the essence of my six years of Aikido training and represents one of the ongoing challenges for me both in and out of the dojo.
The Longest Journey ~ Daj Hammarskjold
The longest journey
Is the journey inwards
Of him who has chosen his destiny
~ Daj Hammarskjold
Brain and Emotion ~ Interview with Richard Davidson & Sharon Begely
A WNYC interview with Richie Davidson and Sharon Begely on their new book, The Emotional Life of Your Brain: How Its Unique Patterns Affect the Way You Think, Feel, and Live–and How You Can Change Them.
These six elements comprise emotional style:
- Resilience: how slowly or quickly you recover from adversity
- Outlook: how long you are able to sustain positive emotion
- Social Intuition: how adept you are at picking up social signals from the people around you
- Self Awareness: How well you perceive bodily feelings that reflect emotions
- Sensitivity to Context: how good are you at regulating your emotional responses to take into account the social context you find yourself in
- Attention: how sharp and clear your focus is
Posted in Neuroscience
Tagged Audio, brain, emotions, Neuroscience, Richard Davidson
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Finance Innovation Lab
“How can we build a financial system that really sustains people and planet?” This is an inspiring story of the Finance Innovation Lab project in the UK. They are using the tools of conversational leadership to explore finance and economics and to design innovations and prototypes. The lab has three areas of focus:
- Connect people and networks
- Prototype new ideas
- Develop leaders
What if we could apply this same energy to the healthcare challenge?
Social Healing and the Greater Self ~ Judith Thompson
Part 1: Social Healing as an Evolutionary Paradigm
Part 2: Suffering with Others as a Path of Liberation
Part 3: Paradox of Compassion
Part 4: How Self Healing Makes Compassion Possible
Part 5: How Our Stories Impact Our Ability to Grow
Fear ~ Charles Eisenstein
Fear is not the enemy, despite what so many spiritual teachers say. “The opposite of love,” says one. “Frozen joy,” says another. Actually fear is a guardian, holding us in a safe space in which to grow; you can even say that fear is a gift. Eventually, as we grow, the fears that were once protective become limiting, and we desire to be born. That this will happen is inevitable. Trust yourself now, and you will continue to trust yourself when your desire moves you to transcend the old fears and enter a larger, brighter realm. When the moment of birth comes you will not be able to stop yourself.
Charles Eisenstein from Sacred Economics