What is calling you? What is the mountain you need to climb? And most importantly how are you planning to start your climb and what will keep you going to see the beauty at the top?!

When you think of acceptance, do you think of self-love? Do you love and accept yourself, and, in doing so, attend to your needs? This can come in the form of knowing when you reached your max OR when you need to engage a little more in something that calls to you.

This is brought to you by Dan Young, founder of Simple Again, a whole foods company that has helped hundreds of businesses and thousands of their customers with pre and post-workout diets as well as daily regimens to meet their wellness goals and/or fight disease. He taught me everything I know in the ways of nutrition and he is excited to share it with you.

My best friends are some of the most positive, happy people I know and I spend as much time around them as possible. It’s contagious to tap into the energy of someone who feels connected and is strong enough to be who they are and live the life that has been given to them. Obviously, it takes work to have the life you want; but at some level you have to trust that everything is happening for you, not to you. There is a bigger plan out there and sometimes we need reminders. We can all amp each other up along the way, yes?!

In the center of who we are is our core. When I talk about a “strong core” most people think in terms of how many crunches they need to do to get a six pack. This can be nice, but in yoga when we explore our subtle body, our core refers to our Solar Plexus. This is our place of power, confidence and true strength.

Being present needs to be practiced daily, hourly, minute by minute. And so, with all great things, we need reminders (like our morning alarms), but throughout the day. In zen tradition, the invitation to awaken is a soft bell every hour to remind you of the fact that you are alive, to be grateful and find this moment and all that it is bringing you.

Persistence takes energy and a lot of it. But how do we gather and maintain this energy? Nathalie Croix, one of my teachers and the shining light leading the way through my 300 hour Teacher Training shares with us a meditation designed to inspire …

Pura Vida, translated as “pure life”, is how the Costa Ricans roll. Their vibrant skin, smiles and food all lend themselves to this way of life. They live and breathe for the land that so beautifully surrounds them. The animals embrace the wealth of the jungle and the people seem to just choose a lifestyle that supports simplicity, beauty, and connection to the land and others.

We all have a super power, something we came with, something that brings us closer, keeps us connected and aligned. Once you find what this is, it is yours to use just as those characters in stories get gifted by a magician or a magical sword and all the sudden something inside lights up and they become their bravest selves. How cool is that to know that you can have that too? Now, let’s find your super power and use it for the greater good …

When we do what we love and do it with passion, sharing every aspect of who we are in the process, we open doors where there were once walls and we step into an abundant life. All you have to do is say yes. Be brave in your pursuit as you move in the direction that is calling. Any choice you make will get you to a place you can learn from. So pick one and get moving and then be ready to receive the gifts that are sure to come.

Days after witnessing the turtles’ journey to the sea in Costa Rica, the discussion in Joan Halifax’s classes centered around soft front, hard back and resilience being “a context for an exhale.” As with a turtle (soft front, hard back), how can we show up and go to our edge at the same time?

The longer I walk (sometimes crawl), dance, laugh, cry at times, along this path, the more I realize it is not about attaining some kind of perfection. As you try harder, for something you are dreaming up, more and more desires start to unfold and become the focus. What if instead we just keep showing up, do our best, even enjoy the dance of it all along the way and then peacefully thank all that gave us breath and ability to be and rest in our beds each night.

We all know them. Whether it be in books, on social media (dare I say), your neighbors, perfect strangers, teachers, children, etc. As I have learned, age and wisdom do not always go hand in hand. Some of the wisest people I have met have been much younger than me. When someone is trying to tell you something, do yourself and them a favor, and listen.

These are fun colorful bowls you can make quickly to brighten up any day. Have fun with the toppings, get creative and enjoy!

Gratitude is the cultivation of being thankful for everything around us, even the things we do not yet understand. From taking time to listen to a new perspective (paradigm shifts can be magical), to watching random acts of kindness (and they are happening all around you), to moments that take your breath away.

If you look around, you will notice spirals everywhere in nature, an up to a down, a left to a right, an inner to an outer- opposites which perfectly balance each other out creating harmony and ultimately peace. In this place, your center, you can find wisdom, comfort and peace.

“Hocus Pocus you need to focus” is something you will hear me saying to my ten year old daughter as we navigate virtual school and life! She knows she needs to focus, we both know we need to focus to be present with the task at hand, but how?!

All the work you are doing, the roles you play, the people you touch, the lives you save every day (and we all do, if only with a smile) is leading you somewhere far more magnificent than you could ever truly see at one glance.