Contemplating Mortality
Nobody looks forward to dying. It's good to be thinking about life and living as long and as well as possible, but we shouldn't assume that death is only about suffering and its avoidance or its suppression. There are also experiences, interactions, opportunities, that are of profound value for individuals and all who love them. ... posted on Feb 14 2014, 8,622 reads

The Pain & Beauty of Change
"The reason for our suffering is our resistance to the changes in life. And life is all changes. While I resist change (and suffer) just like anyone else, I have learned to adapt. I've learned some flexibility. I've realized this: Everything changes, and this is beautiful." Generally, it seems we have two options in regards to change: we can choose to react negatively, or we can choose to react po... posted on Feb 13 2014, 44,783 reads

All Because Of George
Gone are the days when a firm handshake and a smile 'sealed the deal.' Lately, it seems that even the most beautiful of deeds are often viewed with a hint of suspicion. Have we become so distant, that we are incapable of reaching through these barriers to service? Read this most beautiful article about how one man's selfless actions restored another family's faith in humanity. Because of George, w... posted on Feb 12 2014, 33,246 reads

The Art of Revising Your Inner Storytelling
Stories are the colorful pieces of fabric woven from our interpretations of reality. Yet, there is tendency to get stuck in only one or a few ways of telling a story. What can be done to change a negative narrative into a positive one? In her book, 'How to Stay Sane', author Philippa Perry urges keeping an open mind and taking a bird's eye view of our own thinking. "We need to look at the repetiti... posted on Feb 11 2014, 36,908 reads

A 29-Year-Old's Undying Legacy of Love
He wasn't famous in the usual sense. But no one who met him ever forgot him. Raghu Makwana lost his legs to polio as a child. But he did not let that stop him from serving the world. When a group of students found him he was a young runaway arranging people's footwear outside a local temple. Struck by his luminous spirit they arranged to have him join a non-profit at the Gandhi Ashram in India. In... posted on Feb 10 2014, 35,703 reads

Mind & Mood On A Breathing Planet
The awareness that stirs within each of us is continuous with the wider awareness that moves all around us, bending the grasses and lofting the clouds. Every organism partakes of this awareness from its own angle and place within it, each of us imbibing it through our nostrils or through the stomata in our leaves, altering its chemistry and quality within us before we breathe it back into the surr... posted on Feb 09 2014, 6,109 reads

Are You an Empathizer or a Sympathizer?
Empathy and sympathy are not just two different approaches to confronting the emotional challenges of others: they are diametrically opposite responses in many important ways. Sympathy places another's problems at a distance from us, places us in a position of superiority, and "drives separation", says Dr. Brene Brown. Empathy, on the other hand, requires that one internalize the feelings of anoth... posted on Feb 08 2014, 8,041 reads

Three Lessons from a Kindness Challenge
In this first person account, author Thao Phi reflects on some of the unique and important things she discovered after partaking in a 30-day kindness challenge. For one, she learned that people must be courageous in their acts of kindness to strangers, and secondly, to never overlook doing good deeds to those that are closest to you. And last, but certainly not least, make sure you are kind to the... posted on Feb 07 2014, 42,870 reads

The Marriage of Love & Power
Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit that raises charitable donations to invest in companies, leaders, and ideas that are changing the way the world tackles poverty. In this interview, she talks about her revolutionary approach to philanthropy that has impacted the lives of over 100 million people, what moved her to leave her safe world of banking to work with t... posted on Feb 06 2014, 22,747 reads

What Is Empathy?
"The term "empathy" is used to describe a wide range of experiences. Emotion researchers generally define empathy as the ability to sense other people's emotions, coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling. Contemporary researchers often differentiate between two types of empathy:: "Affective empathy" refers to the sensations and feelings we get in response... posted on Feb 05 2014, 58,973 reads