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The other day at a coffee shop, I was talking with my colleagues when a strange man interrupted our conversation. As we were talking about teaching, one of my favorite subjects in the world, he said: “I think students should just do their work and stop complaining. I tell my daughter all the time to…

When I need to make a decision, I get a pain in my left shoulder. It’s a finger pressing into the top of my back, pushing into my skin and urging me forward. Stubbornly, I want to stand still. The finger of pain is brown black like tar and it’s sticky and persistent. It doesn’t…

This is the final week of classes at my university. Next week is final exam week. These are two of the tough weeks on a teacher or student’s calendar. And let’s face it. They’re sometimes tough weeks for anyone connected to teachers and students. We all have tough weeks. Some are in retrospect, “Geez, that…

Lentils and Romanesco, charred broccolini and Marcona almonds, butternut squash and mushrooms, pork tenderloin and smoked heirloom tomatoes… the beautiful, savory dishes kept coming to our big table at Handle in Park City. Mmm. Mmm. Mmm mmm mmm. “This is so good,” I kept saying. “Wow. This is so good.” We were a table of…

Sometimes, around the holidays, people say, “This has been a tough year,” or “This has been a really challenging year.” Have you been challenged this year? Difficulties facilitate growth. Rejection is redirection. Challenges create change. This year, if you’ve had difficulties, try saying, “I have grown a lot this year. I have learned a lot…

This semester, I teach one class in one building, then run to a second class in a second building, then run to a third class in a third building. When I first saw my schedule, I thought I was going to be in hell this semester. Except, there’s a little bit of heaven in every…

“I feel so unmotivated,” my student said. “There’s so much to do, and no matter what I do, it doesn’t seem to make a dent in what I need to get done. I get so frustrated. Then, I watch Netflix, and then I feel guilty for doing that. I don’t know what to do.” I…

“Who here is good at delivering bad news?” I asked my class. Only one hand in the room went up. “Ok, only one person.” The rest of the room sat in an uncomfortable silence. I asked my lone ranger, “Why do you think you are good at delivering bad news?” He said, “I think it’s…

This morning, my friend was in her car across an intersection from me. She turned, I turned, and I ended up stopped at a red light behind her. Then it was furious waving and heart hands and jazz hands, and then she jumped out of her car, ran back to mine, and hugged me through…

Allowing. It’s a verb that can be difficult for me. Allow sadness. Allow anger. Allow urges to come and go. Allow love. Allow yourself to receive. Since developing a mindfulness practice and observing my thoughts, I sometimes don’t want to allow myself to be sad. I can see the sad thoughts running through my mind…