This talk offers some basic tools and reflections to help meditation students with Depression and Anxiety. You will learn to recognize the optical illusions of mind, label distorted thinking patterns, and unblend from difficult mindstates.

This guided meditation helps us cultivate a friendly relationship with our experience. Using the image of a smile, we bring a gentle presence alive in our bodies, and then open to the heartspace that includes all facets of life. The meditation closes with a verse from poet, Dorothy Hunt, “Peace is this Moment Without Judgment.”

I ran across acclaimed poet, Rosemerry Trommer, several years ago in a volume where she shares about the loss of her son, Finn, who took his life at age 16. I had never read anything on grieving that touched me so deeply, that held so much wisdom, such a deep affirmation of love. I went on to read her collection All the Honey, and now her new one, The Unfolding. These books are filled with Post-its: I didn’t realize how much I needed Rosemerry’s words to remind me of what most matters. In our interview, we talk about the key themes in her poems: grief, love, opening to what’s difficult and what’s beautiful… saying yes to life. The Unfolding, by Rosemerry Wahtola Tromer, will help you remember the loving that most matters, and to say Yes to this precious life. This is a wonderful gift to your own spirit, and for dear ones in your life! Order Rosemerry’s books, here!

The original questions were live. They have been précised and read by a third person. Q1 A woman asks: I have a sister who's in a care home and lives far away. She's younger than I and I feel a degree of responsibility and want to help her. It's been discovered there's been some theft from her bank account which she has control over. The police and care home staff are involved. So the teaching on activation seems very appropriate for me. I'm noticing that my activation to get involved seems to take me over is getting really difficult to handle. What can you repeat or recommend? 03:02 Q2 I find as I practice more and more, I am less willing to deal with worldly things like money, focusing on the future. There's also a sense of contentment with the way things are. How can I go about my practice as this unfolds? 05:51 Q3 My question is similar to the previous one, finding opportunities to reflect internally rather than be wrapped up in work and everything. These opportunities exist and have improved but they seem to be fewer than I would like. How can I incorporate this with having to live my everyday life? I feel I can't leave everything and just go like the Buddha did and I don't seem satisfied with my current situation. Anything else you can offer? 10:19 Q4 Regarding the kandhas, did the Buddha or could you recommend any dedicated formal practice in this area? 15:39 Q5 I've recently extricated myself from a 5-year relationship which was very difficult for me. It seems like when we extricate ourselves from an arrangement like this it seems like it's become just a dream. All the entanglement and energy put into it and then it just ... ends. I'm asking myself 'Was there ever any love, any care?' And it seems very shocking and it seems like the whole of life is like that. Part of me wants to reach out and say: 'Did you care?' But it's over and that seems pointless. Could you say something about that please?

Suffering can be a gift that helps you self-correct back to right action.