Beginning again used to sound like something dramatic to me. But lately, I’m realizing it often looks much more ordinary: noticing when I’ve drifted, reacted, or carried something longer than I needed to — and learning how to come back without turning it into failure.
Some days nothing is wrong, but something still feels off. This reflection explores how mindfulness helps us notice those moments without trying to fix them, and how simply not making things worse can be enough.
While walking on a treadmill, I noticed how much anger and chaos I was absorbing from screens around me, even with music in my ears. A reflection on awareness, calm, and what we take in without noticing.
We speak thousands of words each day — but how often do we notice their impact? This reflection explores how mindfulness and the Buddhist teaching of Wise Speech can transform the way we communicate. Through personal examples and gentle awareness, it’s a reminder that every word creates a ripple.
Last weekend, Emily and I were in Chicago — and it just happened to be marathon weekend. Watching the runners brought back a flood of memories from my own eight Chicago Marathons. What stood out most wasn’t race day, but the training — the quiet, consistent miles that no one sees. Those “treadmill days” taught me that the real work happens long before the finish line.
On one of those long solo runs years ago, something clicked: the most important mile isn’t the one ahead or behind — it’s the one I’m in. It’s the only mile I can enjoy, and the only one I can do anything about. That truth has carried me through recovery and through life — a reminder to stay present in the mile I’m living right now.
