True peace comes from letting go of preferences and consciously interacting with life as it unfolds. Life’s moments, good or bad, are unique experiences to be appreciated and respected. Embracing challenges with openness can transform struggles into meaningful experiences. This shift in consciousness toward acceptance fosters an elevated, peaceful inner state. This is the foundation for deep spiritual growth.
At this time of thanks-giving, I want to thank you, a beloved member of our extended Sounds True community of listeners, readers, authors, and learners worldwide.
Thank you for your interest and willingness to be an explorer of your inner world.
Thank you for your perseverance, your willingness to be here, with all of life’s great joys and terrible griefs and sorrows. Thank you for being ”on the journey,” with all of the ways life breaks open our hearts and asks us to expand and hold a larger space of love.
Thank you for your courage to be you, beloved and singular, the you that carries a unique gift, some special look, a cry and a laugh never heard before, a contribution we need. Thank you for being yourself and extending yourself to others, even in small ways, which often turn out to be huge.
My own prayer this Thanksgiving is to remain steadfast and true. Please know that here at Sounds True we remain so—and we love doing so in connection with you. We are here because you are here. This thanks-giving, I bow to the strength and goodness of our human hearts.
With you on the journey,
Tami
P.S. Here is a thanks-giving offering, a classic poem from Mary Oliver:
Praying
It doesn’t have to be the blue iris, it could be weeds in a vacant lot, or a few small stones; just pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don’t try to make them elaborate, this isn’t a contest but the doorway
into thanks, and a silence, in which another voice may speak.
Meghan Riordan Jarvis had been a practicing trauma therapist for almost 20 years. Then, in the course of two years, she lost both of her parents. “I came to understand what my clients had been telling me about for decades really, really differently,” she reflects. In this podcast, join Tami Simon in conversation with Meghan about Can Anyone Tell Me?, her new book that explores the most common and perplexing questions on how to navigate grief.
Whether you yourself are facing loss or you’re looking for ways to support someone who is, give a listen to this compassionate conversation on: how to use stopping techniques to break the cycle of ruminating thoughts; the vagus nerve and the mind-body connection; nervous system co-regulation and creating a “triangle of support”; how grief affects the brain; the feeling of isolation that often accompanies grief; rewriting the narratives we tell ourselves; three simple universal strategies for moving through grief; becoming an effective supporter for someone in need; educating a grief-illiterate culture; working with the parasympathetic nervous system to expand your “window of tolerance”; the Box Breathing practice; why it’s important to validate our fears, even if we think they’re irrational; staying curious about what you can learn about yourself through the grief process; and more.
Note: This episode originally aired on Sounds True One, where these special episodes of Insights at the Edge are available to watch live on video and with exclusive access to Q&As with our guests. Learn more at join.soundstrue.com.
Embracing deep truth involves being willing to look at human existence in relation to the universe—we are all on a small planet in the middle of nowhere for a brief moment in time. To avoid facing this truth, we make up personal beliefs and create a self-concept (ego) that leads to tremendous suffering and conflict. The key to living truthfully is to let go of the ego, embrace the vast reality of life, and focus on serving life instead of serving yourself.