I love this image. I took a self-imposed retreat at The Brickworks in Toronto last Friday. The image is from that morning…the day was clear, with a breeze and nature was in bloom. I can’t wait to get back there, to feel close to nature, to pause, and connect.

(Re)Treat.

Full disclosure: Sometimes I want to leave this busy city, this current hectic pace, as we prepare for a big move and reno, with young kids in tow…with whom I want to be be present and engage mindfully. It feels like a LOT sometimes. And I’m supposed to be the one coaching clients on how to manage their own hectic lives! Well, I’m living it too!!

Sometimes, I just need to get away from it all.

Tip.

We need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own 'to do' list. Michelle Obama

I never tire of this quote from Michelle Obama. I need to bring the ethos of this quote to mind multiple times a day or else I get lost in the over-doing and the shortness of breath and tension which comes along with it.

So, in the spirit of Michelle’s self-compassion, a tip: Which one item on today’s ‘to do’ list can you drop down lower and which item needs to be raised to the top?


Tool.

This ten minute positivity practice by prolific meditation teacher, Shinzen Young, has been shifting my sometimes limited notions of self-care. I used to struggle with negative thinking - practices like Shinzen’s have helped me rewire my thoughts.