I like to win but really hate to lose. I’ve tried to force this part of me out, but it refuses.
It’s been with me since childhood, when I cheated at board games and left the room crying after a bad round of Uno.
Though usually hidden, a chess match with my 6-year-old surfaced this pettiness. Read more
It’s the end of the day. Body’s tired, brain’s done, and spirit’s fading. But sleep’s still in the distance because life awaits.
Yet it’s in this semi-exhausted, late-day state that some of our most impactful moments arrive . . . Read more
Ever pass something dozens of times until one day it quietly steps into your field of presence? This happened to me last weekend just outside my favorite place for an iced almond milk latte.
I was on an early morning Father’s Day coffee mission but something about this familiar plant made me stop. And I realized the magic I’d mindlessly passed during so many previous visits: Read more
I’d read the story years before and knew I should step away, but I didn’t. So there I stood in Target’s electronics section, producing tears I refused to release. All because a children’s book was tugging at my heart.
Now, before you get sentimental, this was definitely not an “aww” moment. In fact, I went home and transformed some of those unshed tears into an angry speech that left my hubby wide-eyed.
What was so upsetting? Read more
What pairs with teriyaki salmon? BBQ sauce, if you ask my six-year-old. So there on the table lay the wrapper from the brand new bottle, and what did my mind pair with that? The props game from Whose Line Is It Anyway? of course!
If you’re not familiar, the game’s goal is to use a random item in creative ways, and the show’s goal is to make you laugh.
So mid-dinner, we played round one of The Meyer Family Props Game. And in those few moments, here’s what I captured: Read more
“How can I be present with my family when my phone is dinging in the background?”
I bet most of us can second this question I received from a recent workshop attendee. It’s that urgent feeling of needing to know who’s texted or whether someone’s emailed back yet or how many people have commented on our latest post.
We can’t turn our phones off, because “what if someone needs us?” but we also can’t get these urges out of our heads until we feed our curiosity what it wants. Kind of like sugar cravings. And when checking our phones is as easy as popping a chocolate square, why wait? Read more
Can you remember your last bad day?
Mine happened exactly two weeks ago. Driving home, I watched as a fire truck took a right turn toward my neighborhood.
Always an unsettling feeling.
When I arrived, I saw the truck had joined other emergency vehicles, just down the street from my house. Though everyone was physically okay, the event challenged people’s security in their safest of places.
When bad stuff like this happens, it triggers waves of fear-based emotions. And these waves form circles around those involved, extending to their loved ones, their friends, their neighbors, their town, and maybe farther.
So my bad day was a bad day for a lot of people.
And a big challenge for presence and gratitude. In fact, when people and bad things collide, presence and gratitude face a couple strong arguments: Read more
Not all days bring us puppies and rainbows, not even all birthdays. Mine was Saturday, and in Saint Louis it was “burning” (as my daughter would say).
If you don’t know me well, here’s some inside information—I don’t do well in the heat.
I’ve been that way since I was a kid. I remember our big family trip to Disney World the summer after 2nd grade. We had just parked the car on Day 1, and my first words as I stepped toward the holy grail of Disney? Read more
It’s coming quickly—are you ready?
It’s almost September! That’s right, month 9 of 12.
Sorry to speed your mind to Halloween and beyond, but I’ve been thinking about time lately.
I think it’s because now is when life seems to get away from us—the school year’s settled into its routine, the household is back on “ordinary” time, and we’re focused on making it through the week.
Or maybe time’s been getting the best of us since January, but we only realize it as we head into the “ber’s”—those months that slide us to the year’s conclusion.
So is it possible to slow time? Read more
“Why is June going so fast?!? It needs to slow down!” my seven-year-old shouted, worried that summer break was slipping through her pink-tipped fingers. I had to smile at her being so aware of time and its preciousness. Usually she’s the one counting down months, not days, to her birthday and planning her Halloween costume in the spring, trying to hurry the calendar.
But because of my work in the mindfulness arena, I’ve tried to create a family culture that values our time together and points all four of us in the direction of peace. So here’s my formula: Read more