As long as you continue to compare, you suffer from the fear of coming up short; and, even worse, you keep yourself trapped in a constant, painful delusion of isolation and alienation.

Our thinking, perceiving, and worrying take away all the space inside us, and keep us from being in touch with what’s happening moment to moment.

Before you can be there for someone else, you have to be there for yourself. So we practice this mantra first with ourselves. “I am here for you” also means that I am here for myself. The mind goes home to the body and we become aware that we have a body. This is something we forget, especially when we’re absorbed in our work. The practice of

When we bring our mind home to our body, something wonderful happens; our mental discourse stops its chattering.

Some people think that in order to be happy they must avoid all suffering, and so they are constantly vigilant, constantly worrying.

If we can recognize and cradle the suffering while we breathe mindfully, there is relief already.

When we experience a strong emotion, the mind is agitated like the top of the tree. We have to bring our mind down to the trunk, to the abdomen, and focus all our attention on the rise and fall of the abdomen.

In just two or three breaths taken with your full attention, you may notice that regret and sorrow about the past have paused, as well as uncertainty, fear, and worries about the future.

You can discover how, through looking deeply, you can transform this organic “garbage” into compost, which in turn may become many beautiful flowers of understanding, compassion, and joy.