Her purse was a weight, ballast; it tethered her to the earth as her mind floated away.

Rituals are a good signal to your unconscious that it is time to kick in.

So a moral position is not a message. A moral position is a passionate caring inside you.

I'd like to learn to meditate with more enthusiasm. I can sit down and get quiet for 20 minutes, but it just has not been a part of my Christianity at all.

You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories.

If you don't believe in God, it may help to remember this great line of Geneen Roth's: that awareness is learning to keep yourself company. And then learn to be more compassionate company, as if you were somebody you are fond of and wish to encourage. I doubt that you would read a close friend's early efforts and, in his or her presence, roll your eyes and snicker. I doubt that you would pantomime sticking your finger down your throat. I think you might say something along the lines of, 'Good for you. We can work out some of the problems later, but for now, full steam ahead!

I was raised by my parents to believe that you had a moral obligation to try and help save the world.