“According to neuroscience research, mindfulness practices dampen activity in our amygdala and increase the connections between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex. Both of these parts of the brain help us to be less reactive to stressors and to recover better from stress when we experience it.” – Greater Good Science Center

Mindfulness will make you invincible because you won’t be emotionally attached to thoughts and circumstances. This happens when you create space between thoughts and awareness. As you rise above thoughts and circumstances, you will be unmoved by constant change around you. You will have profound stability seeing things as they are and not eager to change and manipulate them. Easily access this stability through inner knowing and not identifying with the mind’s opinions.

1. Go deeper into your inner sense of Self

What or who gets hurt happens so much on the surface of who you are. The superficial you, your ego. But that is not all you that you are. Most people identify with their body, social status, role in the family and society. These are personas, and if you look up the root word of person it means mask. So what is behind the mask? It is the real you, the one who decided to go on this journey before you were born. You have access to this greater part of you.

Go deeper into your inner sense of Self through meditation. Access this state of pure strength and knowingness. Above and beyond your petty desires and fears. If you tap into just a sliver of this knowingness, you will feel bigger and know that all of these things that bother you are just thoughts. In becoming bigger and at one with the real you, nothing will bother you anymore.

“True self is non-self, the awareness that the self is made only of non-self elements. There’s no separation between self and other, and everything is interconnected. Once you are aware of that you are no longer caught in the idea that you are a separate entity.”

– Thich Nhat Hanh

2. Perpetual Inner Peace

Cultivating inner peace is one of the many outcomes of mindfulness. As we engage in our day to day activities we get wrapped up and lost in the complexity of the countless details and decisions we are obliged to make. Having a steady practice of meditation and carrying mindfulness all throughout the day will provide inner peace despite the chaos around you.

“Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.”

– St Francis De Sales

3. Enhanced Flexibility

In creating space between your awareness and situations, the way you respond to circumstances change. Becoming more mindful makes you flexible and adaptable because you will have greater understanding of the wholeness of things rather than its divided contradictions. With clarity and mindfulness you will be flexible and will act graciously towards what is needed at the moment. You will be able to turn into this adaptive being because you have space where in you can really analyze first before you act. It is also called psychological flexibility. Being able to see from different perspectives will save you a whole lot of frustrations. You’ll see that there’s nothing to be bummed about. All “just is” and you are flexible and gracious to participate and help instead of consuming and being served.

“The boldness of asking deep questions may require unforeseen flexibility if we are to accept the answers.”

– Brian Greene

4. The Power Of Equanimity

With a regular meditation practice, you will get to learn to live mindfully. Your moment to moment experience will be your practice.

Equanimity means Equal mind. Being in the state of equilibrium can be achieved if we arrive at each moment with no judgement. When we are equanimous, anything that arises in the mind is too small and incidental compared to awareness itself. Experience grounded presence in however extreme our circumstance maybe. This is true invincibility if you ask me.

“Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.”

– Carl Jung

5. Relationship Satisfaction

One of the many factors that contribute to our overall wellbeing is the quality of our relationships. Becoming more mindful, you will be able to communicate clearly with your loved ones with empathy, sympathy and an understanding beyond your own perspective. You will have the capacity to accept people for who and what they are, their preferences, because you will see your reflection in them. Becoming more mindful, you will say, this person is just like me, yearning to be loved and accepted. So why not let that acceptance start with you?

“It is not our purpose to become each other; it is to recognize each other, to learn to see the other and honor him for what he is.” 

– Herman Hasse

6. Ease Physical Aches & Pains

According to a study in April of 2011 published in the Journal of Neuroscience states that a mindful meditation practice of 80 minutes reduces physical pain in half.

Much of the physical pain we experience is accentuating the physical sensation with our strong power of focused attention. This is what we call secondary suffering. We tend to inflate situations or sensations to a magnitude bigger than what really is. With mindfulness, we are honoring the bodily sensations may it be agreeable or disagreeable. Perceive these bodily sensations as messages, maybe your body is longing to be bent, stretched and moved. Listen to your body, it has intelligence and maybe it is saying something.

“100% of the time, pain is a construct of the brain.”

– Lorimer Moseley,

7. Enhanced Self Awareness

Self awareness is the ability to align our values with our behavior. To define your goals, mission and purpose. Focusing your attention to what is the highest form of good at this moment for myself and others. To become truly realized and tuned into your most sincere intention in this life. Know your position, where you are right now, where you are going and how you are going to get there. Today be mindful of these things, in silent meditation you can ask your inner knowing to guide you towards perfect actions during the day.

“The knowing—in body, mind, and soul—that we are one with the omnipresence of God; that we do not have to pray that it come to us, that we are not merely near it at all times, but that God’s omnipresence is our omnipresence; that we are just as much a part of Him now as we ever will be. All we have to do is improve our knowing.”

– Paramahansa Yogananda

8. Expansion Of Consciousness

Whenever you sit in silent meditation or prayer, you open yourself up to the awareness that is beyond your persona / ego / identity. Expanding beyond futile opinions, emotions and circumstances. In becoming more mindful, you realize the perfection of eternal bliss and joy. Satchitananda (Ever New Bliss) as they say in yogic language.

Give your self this gift of being undisturbed by the material world. The gift of mindfulness opens up the door to omnipresence, the true nature of what we are. Accessing this state of mind and being you will have achieved invincibility beyond comprehension.

“So long as we are immersed in body consciousness, we are like strangers in a foreign country. Our native land is omnipresence.”

– Paramahansa Yogananda

Parting Thoughts

True power is already within but it is up to us to nurture and cultivate it. True power and invincibility that is serene, accepting and ever new. There is always something in life that renews itself. So feel blessed that you are that, you are infinite, invincible although sometimes play the game of hide and seek that you are not.

Namaste

• The best time to do it is whenever you other than feel like it is because it is a good way to know if you are really committed to the practice.

• It will deepen your relationship and close the gap between your present self & Ideal self.

• Choosing to bypass the things you need to will keep things the same; if you want growth or positive change, your commitment to practice must be unconditional.

• This is how you gain mastery of the body and mind, when you can command and make it do regardless of what it suggests, you cast a vote towards the larger part of you. The one that is waiting and craving to be built, one act in the present moment at a time.

• This is how you switch from stagnation to flow, usually in deciding to just jump in and do the undesired thing at the moment for a higher cause, after 2 minutes in the practice, the whole energy changes. It's just about taking the first step, counting from 5 to 1 is my go-to. Also visualizing the effects of if I skip as opposed to do unconditionally makes me just jump in and get things moving.

• Untap new worlds by disrupting the pattern of what the mind expects. I love shaking the ego out of its comfort to let him know who is really in charge. Turn that knob to cold, do another set or just start doodling with pen or riffing on a guitar.

• When you other than feel like doing the things that you promised yourself that you know that is good for you in the long term, it's a sign that the smaller part of you is trying to keep things the same because it is afraid of change. The spirit comes in hunches, whispers and specially through inspired action. Serve your higher self through commitment, you'll feel better after. Wise actions and choices for long term rewards than short term present dopamine that spirals you down in the long run.

Hello there friend! How's the week looking like? How's it feeling like? Are you having a clear picture of where things are going in your life? It is important to have a clear view of your ideal because it will determine how you are doing the activity in the present moment. Where are you going? Keep it clear, written and vivid in your minds eye and stay committed in the present in alignment with that imagined version of your life.

Decide on what you are going for, it doesn't need to be a great feat or an outrageous accomplishment. What it needs to be is how it sits on your feelings, how it is aligned to your innermost self. What is really important to you? it maybe quietness, non doing, peace, or being open to new things.

We can also reflect on our identity, instead of the tangible achievements like “a book”, we can bring more energy and attention on the type of person who writes books. Same goes with a healthy active fit person, imagine and embody the type of person who exercises regularly rather than stressing on finishing a work out.

We can do this embodiment centering practice in taking a deep breath and affirming through phrases that work and resonate. Affirm and center for three minutes with eyes closed and then flowingly dive into the activity that will lead to the fulfillment of your desire. Knowing that the joy and reward is in the being and doing and not in the thing that will come out of the effort.

Make this a moment-to-moment practice. Internalizing then tapping into flow for a certain block of time.

We always say it's best when we do things when we feel like it but those feelings are fleeting. Most times we feel inspired to work on our personal growth intensely and excitedly but the excitement fades because we rely on waiting for that feeling again. Much like the concept of motivation vs discipline.

The part of us who resist doing the right thing and waits for the feeling is the part of us who is fixed and attached to comfort and might not have a good identification of what and how good a life can be only if we showed up for our commitments.

It can be a commitment to a healthier, more peaceful, more creative way of being. A commitment to touching more lives. Our goals are in constant revision because we are always changing and a daily reflection of what is important and what we are going for is needed for us to be continuously aligned to our higher purpose.

In deep inhales and moments of clarity, tap into your inner compass. Feel and embody what's authentic, know how you will express it and deliberately practice free of expectations of how things will turn out. In this way of being we won't need outcomes because we are in the full state of being. Only fulfilling the truth of who and what we are. I feel this right now as I write this for you my friend. It just feels right that my insights be shared and offered to you because it might bring some joy or ease in some way or another.

So the next time you become aware that you need to do something but don't feel like it, take a deep breath and ask again, tap into the version of yourself that is committed to growth, and know that it might feel good to shy away from the challenge in the short term but it feels so much better to embrace something bigger than us and to build that ideal life one day at a time and it starts with this wise not easy choice right now.

What shall it be for you? 🫶

Love used books with notes of previous owners, found this gem with lots of excerpts from different books. The former owner seems pretty serious about his/her personal growth journey. A reminder to shift from criticism to empathy. When receiving criticism, be thankful and use this tool for growth. Things affect us and enter our hemisphere of attention for a reason; we need to work in them or set them straight. Lessons are repeated until learned. We will learn it one way or the other so might as well have an approach mindset with regards to learning and what we are called for. Being open & courageous is more fun than being closed and wimpy dimpy. Shift from judgement to empathy.

Let's hang and get centered ❤️

Let's whip something up in the kitchen

Been into one pots lately, this is just a pot of butternut squash, tomatoes, onions and ginger. Cut them up and throw in a pot with olive oil and coconut milk. Let it boil and bring down to simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with rice or enjoy by itself.

More recipes here 🫶

Links to enjoy ❤️

The Noble Try

be crumbled

Happy Sunday! I’ve been thrumming with excitement and humility all week. There are more of you here than I ever expected, but not so many that I couldn’t clock every name. I’ll never forget you for showing up. You know who you are… and so do I! Now please keep talking and tapping. 👇🏼❤️…

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3 years ago · 14 likes · 18 comments · Isabel Cowles Murphy

Talking to Myself

my raw material

Last Sunday, I couldn’t go to sleep. Isabel Cowles Murphy published a piece for her new series “Raw Material,” where she asked the big questions (and called me her friend…I’m humbled). My brain was on fire - in the best way. My synapses were moving at warp speed. I started writing sentences in my head…

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3 years ago · 11 likes · 10 comments · Caroline

CAFÉ ANNE

The Naked Cowboy's Morning Routine

Hello everyone, Welcome to Issue #82 of CAFÉ ANNE! Rah! It felt like everyone just loved Serhiy Mshanetskiy, the Ukrainian doctor turned Brooklyn gardener I profiled in last week’s issue. I’ve seldom gotten so many warm comments on a story. But my favorite response was from Mr. Mshanetskiy himself, who said he and his girlfriend, piano teacher Ruslana Il…

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3 years ago · 23 likes · 24 comments · Anne Kadet

gratitude mojo on the substack journey

Travel & Life Lessons

"You can not change the direction and the forces of the wind. But you can change the setting of your own sail." - Jim Rohn This year I spent January in La Paz with a travel buddy and learned one of those lessons that only happens when you’re mindlessly going about your life…

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3 years ago · 10 likes · 11 comments · Joyce Wycoff

Spark Zen

Becoming a Free Person

“To be really alive, to touch life deeply, you have to become a free person. Cultivating mindfulness can help you be free.” — Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Zen Master…

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3 years ago · 3 likes · 3 comments · Rev. Shoren Heather

That's it friend! Thanks for being here! There is no limit to what you can become so show up in whatever way you can!

A restack, like & share is greatly appreciated ❤️ it stirs up the pot of the algorithm soup so we get to spread more love ❤️🫶🙏🌅🙌

Namaste

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That’s me in the green room of what turned out to be TURBO GOTH’S best shows. I drove from Raleigh to Chattanooga powered by Holiday Inn Express Decaf. 🔥

What does Clarity of Purpose mean?

This means that you know exactly what you want. It is not a vague and unclear goal but a clear, detailed, and specific one. Only by knowing exactly what you want can you achieve it.

Goals are achievable only if they are clear enough. Or, you may get close to something but still feel mis aligned because you skipped clarifying what you really wanted, you allowed your external world to be the mold of your destiny, but thats ok, we can always change direction and make clear our intention, in realtime!

Your goal or dream must be clear and specific. If it’s vague? stay for a while and run it through a series of inquiries. Clarify, purify and go forth with deliberate inspired action.

It's great to fantasize about becoming wealthy and successful. But you must know what you want and how you will get there.

For any success, whether losing weight, buying a car, or traveling abroad, clarity of purpose is essential.

Clarity of purpose is the key to knowing what actions to take.

Clarity of purpose allows you to focus on your goal without wasting energy or time. Clarity of purpose is similar to focusing strong light on your goal so you can see it.

TURBO GOTH opens for Princes Goes 2024

Clarity of purpose is crucial.

1. Clarity is a way to get to the destination you desire.

Once you have a clear vision of what you want, you can create a solid plan and then take the appropriate actions to achieve it.

Assume you are playing football. There is no goalpost on the football field. What do you think is going to happen? You and the other players will race up and down the field chasing the ball, but they won't be able to score until there is a goal post.

It's the same with life. You can be busy and run but not know what you want.

If you want to be successful in your life and achieve extraordinary results, then you need to know exactly what you are looking for. You need to know your destination to create a map/plan to get there.

2. Clarity is the absence of distractions

Once you have a clear vision of where you want to go, it is easier to focus your efforts and energy on getting there.

It's similar to shooting an arrow. It's like shooting an arrow. Once you have a target in mind, you can focus on that target and eliminate all distractions. It doesn't matter what others say or do; you must focus on your target and work towards it.

You may be surprised to learn that Warren Buffett is considered one of the most successful investors in the world. One of the reasons he is so successful in investing is his ability to "disconnect" himself from the rest. He can also stick to his investment decisions.

3. Clarity is proactive, watch when you are being reactive

Yes. When you have a clear purpose, you can be proactive. You will make things happen rather than waiting and reacting to what comes your way.

When you know what you want and have an action plan, it is possible to work on your plan to achieve the desired results. People who don't know how to get extraordinary results in their lives are the ones that procrastinate. Many people don't know what they want.

It is crucial to have a clear purpose.

You should now be able to see the power of clarity of purpose. But how do you get it?

Love cooking tofu, try spending time rearranging stuff in your kitchen for more clarity. Check out the Tofu Archives

How to attain clarity of purpose

• Find out exactly what you want.

• Note down what you would like to accomplish.

• Find out why you want to reach your goal and what you can gain from achieving it.

• Make sure you are genuinely determined to reach your goals.

• Learn about your goal. It may require some knowledge or skills. Find that knowledge and learn how to improve your skills.

• Take photos of your goal. These could include photos of the car you desire, the house you want, the job you are interested in, or pictures of the country you'd like to visit. These photos should be viewed every day.

• Visualize your goal clearly to achieve it.

• See all details in your mind.

• Specific details about the color, size, quantity, shape, and place of what you are trying to achieve or get.

• Focus your attention on your goal.

• Get rid of clutter in your life.

• In your daily life, show perseverance and self-discipline

• Be clear about your goals, what you want to achieve, and the things you plan. These actions can be small and daily, as well as medium and large goals.

Thank you for being here! How are you clearer today than yesterday?

How magical is your life right now?

Are you making time to see them? (The magic)

RESTACK/ COMMENT/ UPGRADE 🙏

Are you ready for a new you?

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This Chickpea Butterbeans Pearl Couscous Soup is a one-pot wonder packed with hearty ingredients and vibrant flavors. A comforting and satisfying soup for any day, it combines tender pearl couscous with protein-rich chickpeas and butterbeans, creating a creamy texture that’s sure to delight. Perfect for cozy dinners or meal prep, it’s a nourishing dish for the whole family.

Other Delish Soups 🍲

• Vegan Amish Tomato Soup

• Vegan Applebee’s Southwest Steak and Black Bean Soup Recipe

• Pret A Manger Moroccan Lentil Soup Recipe

• Vegan Italian Wedding Soup Recipe

• Vegan Mulligatawny Soup

• Vegan Ethiopian Split Pea Soup (Kik Alicha)

• Vegan Cream of Mushroom Soup with Dried Shiitake

• Easy Vegan Kimchi Jiggae

• One Pot Easy Tuscan Ribollita Soup

• Vegan Chili’s Loaded Baked Potato Soup

How’s it going in your world?

Good that you found time to sit and listen. Or maybe you’re doing an activity. A chore. A task that embodies your identity.

Let us remember: we are so much bigger than all of these roles. All of these doings. All of these achievements. All of the past and future.

In one deep resonant breath, we can tap into infinitude. Into eternity.

Relax Everything

Relax the body. Feel free.

Relax the feet. The limbs. The torso. The shoulders (most especially).

Be mindful of posture. Spine straight. Shoulders relaxed. The point between the eyebrows.

Project a calm smile.

Meditate into what is—apart from what we think things should be.

Things Just Are

Things are the way they are.

Leave things as they should be. Without our infringement. Without intervening.

Things happen on their own accord. Without much of our participation.

When help is needed, it’s obvious. We move naturally. Without even thinking about it.

Observe the Mind

Watch the mind as it thinks.

It presents scenarios. Past and future situations. It invites you to embody emotions.

But in your quiet stillness, your dedicated practice, you are unmoved by these constructs.

These are just stories. The mind presents them. It’s its behavior.

It’s a help if we use it properly. But if we entangle with it all day long, if we entertain every thought, we burn out. We go neurotic. Erratic. Stressed.

Master Your Mind

Mastery of the mind = very good priority.

It’s attached to all your doings. How you portray and perform your day. How you build yourself up. How you spend your time.

In moments of silence like this, raise the awareness. Create space between the invitation to react and respond and do—to just being here.

Become a witness for a dedicated amount of time. Witnessing yourself thinking.

Thoughts Pass

Thoughts pass if attention is not put into it.

Where we put our attention, it grows. Whatever it may be, it grows.

This is the power of awareness and attention.

Be mindful where you’re putting your attention.

Be a wise discerner.

Nature Has No Preference

Know that all is joy and love. Just like nature.

Nature has no preference. No good nor evil. It just is.

Evolving. Renewing. Vanishing.

So are you.

The ability to become aware of these things is truly liberating.

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Zoom Out

In your deep breath, rise up above. Bring attention towards the sky. From up above.

Embody the eye of a bird looking down onto a vast landscape.

Or even higher—such that the Earth appears like a small speck.

Amazing how we can point our awareness to these places and see both the macrocosm and the microcosm.

Zoom In

Another good practice: zoom into the atomic level. The cellular level.

Relax the hands. Relax the whole body. Go into the atoms of your blood.

Perfectly concocted to supply life force energy to each nerve. For the senses to become sharp. To receive. To become a sensor. A viewer of this magnificent artwork—what is right in front of you.

Break Free From the Loop

Take a step back. Break free from the replay. The loop.

The automatic responses of the judging mind.

Whenever you feel like you’re judging, pointing the finger towards anything outside of you, think of the three fingers pointing back at you.

Anything and everything that you observe or are compelled to judge is something inside of you that you haven’t looked at yet. That you haven’t processed yet. That needs to be loved.

Maybe something in yourself that you haven’t tended yet. That you haven’t understood yet. That you haven’t studied yet.

And the immediate response is to condemn. To resent.

Are You Resenting Your Cards?

Sometimes we resent the cards we are dealt.

Are you resenting your place in the world?

As long as you’re breathing, there are more good things happening to you than bad.

To become alive is a very rare statistical ratio. Very rare. A billion times more rare than winning the lottery.

Isn’t that something to be grateful for?

Just Being Alive Is the Purpose

To be alive is the purpose of life.

Each moment is complete in and of itself.

Whatever you’re going through—know that it’s temporary. It’s making you stronger. Calling forth the stronger part of you. The bigger version of you.

Maybe it’s asking you to shed some layers you’re addicted to holding on to.

Imagine an old crusty jacket. A crummy shirt. Let it go.

Let Go of the Need

Let go of the need for things to be the same.

Let go of the need for things to be a certain way.

Just be here. The authentic you. Loving. Smiling. Accepting.

The child that has been unsealed. The child that is let free to play.

Embody that playfulness. Creativity. Love. Joy. Acceptance.

Tomorrow Isn’t Guaranteed

Tomorrow is not always guaranteed.

Doesn’t mean the world is going to end. Just means it’s not guaranteed to be the same as today.

Become alert. Become ready.

Thank the sun. Appreciate the leaves.

Make the body in its optimal capability—bend, twist, reach, create beautiful things, lift up others.

Share What You’ve Learned

Share with your friends the things you’ve learned:

• They are not their thoughts

• They are not their sufferings

• Sufferings are self-made (or choice-fully made)

Pain is inevitable. It’s just sensory sensation. Just the senses. Your nervous system vibrating at a higher rate towards the brain.

But the emotional drama around it? Can be transcended. Transversed. Turned into gold.

Reframe What’s Happening

Whatever you’re going through today, take a deep breath. Look at it from another perspective.

Use it as a tool.

Ask: “How is this the best thing that ever happened to me?”

Everything is a blessing in disguise. Everything is a work in progress.

The incompleteness may appear wrong. Or evil. Makes us wound up and react and correct.

But everything is just correcting itself. Autonomically. Automatically. Naturally.

Like how the bird glides.

Let Go. Be Free.

Do you have fun?

Activate and validate.

Question: What old crusty jacket are you still wearing that you need to shed?

Challenge: Today, when you catch yourself judging something or someone, pause. Notice the three fingers pointing back at you. Ask: “What part of me is this showing me that I haven’t loved yet?”

You’re doing great.

Keep in touch.

— Paulo

Start Early Today • makepurethyheart.com

P.S. This post will be paywalled tommorow. Full access is available for paid subscribers. Upgrade today!

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hello there, friend.

A box showed up at our door last week from Moroccan Olive Grove, full of olive oil, preserved lemons, and harissa, more of it than two people could reasonably need. I put it on the counter and just looked at it for a minute. A stranger packed all of that into a box and sent it our way. Hurriedly opening one of the packages, i broke one bottle, you know the thing that happens when one opens a champagne bottle with a knife? that happened to this bottle of olive oil because i was too lazy to look for scissors, so high polyphenol, high grade, expensive oil was splattered all over the kitchen, then a practice in acceptance, taking it slow and letting go insued.

That kind of thing tends to catch me at the right moment lately. Using the tools that we write about. Mostly balancing, acceptance, doing whats necessary at the right time, being at one with the process and letting go of results.

I wrote a piece last week called “Everything Is Change, Flow With It, Create With It”

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Hello there subscribers new and old, free and paid🌹

How’s everything going on in your world. Just popping in your world to affirm our interconnectedness, that there is no barrier between what’s inside your skin and outside of it. Everything is energy, moving and whirling about towards more life and spiraling down to disintegrating as well.

It’s a moment to moment rebirth through breath. An integration of new thought and action and at the same time, death and letting go of the non essentials.

Are you holding on to belief patterns that are obsolete to your new spirit crying out to be birthed through your new identity? If so this creates an imbalance and dis-ease to your being.

Let go of the bad and some good too! If we are ready for something really radically near miraculous transformation. What needs to happen right this moment for your ideal self to be born?

Imagine in your minds eye your ultimate dream. What would this character do? How will he or she invest the most precious currenc…

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Dear one,

There’s a way of looking at the world that changes everything.

We call it presence.

And once you see it, you realize you’ve been practicing it all along, for me it's through music when I create for my band TURBO GOTH, food whenever I put together something delicious, the marks you make on your skin when we tattoo at the studio and being tattooed too! and the moment you wake into consciousness everyday.

Presence means understanding that everything is constantly becoming.

The world is always in motion. The seasons shift. Life circles. People filter in and out And the moment you try to hold something in place, you’re already at risk of falling into an abyss of suffering for yourself, (totally optional)

This is where we all get stuck.

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Summer days on the deck, sauteed corn mushrooms, zucchini, watermelon, greens and cashew cream🙌

hello there, friend.

I’ve been thinking about something for a few weeks now, and it started, of all places, in a tattoo chair.

I was at Snow Tattoo a while back, watching Sarah work on a piece from her Veneraris collection. It’s her signature fine line style, pearls and jewels and flowing water, drawn to follow the natural curve of the body. She told me part of the idea behind it comes from an old teaching in Buddhist and Hindu thought called Indra’s Net. The short version is simple. Everything is connected, and what happens to one part of us touches every other part.

It stuck with me, even though it’s a truth I’ve heard before. It’s one I keep relearning.

That’s really been the theme running through everything I’ve written here in Turbo Goth Universe this year, even when I only half knew it at the time. Every Moment Is a Teacher was about how everything we go through connects to something bigg…

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“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” -Anne Frank

Something happened somewhere between the morning alarm and right now. The day got loud, the demands stacked up, the pace quickened, and somewhere in the middle of all of it you drifted a little from yourself. And the beautiful thing… the thing worth writing home about… is that returning is always available, always close, always beginning with something smaller and simpler than the mind expects.

Pick three of these today. Just three. Let them be the beginning of the return.

Seared Aubergine on cashew butter hummus. Lemons and olive oil on seared produce topped with greens has been the structure of what I've been making lately. Do this with any summer veg you got in the fridge.

1. The sun has been showing up for you every single day without fail. Go sit in it for five minutes, face turned toward the warmth, eyes soft, agenda set aside. Let it remind you that something in this unive…

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Each time we breathe renewal happens beyond what the senses can recognize.

The slower you breathe, the faster the healing.

We tend to tune in to nature’s pace. Breathe through stories in your mind. Breathe through and above our tendencies to judge and react in a way that is less than gracious.

The rush is over. You arrived here, exactly where you need to be, and from here you can create anything and everything your heart may desire.

How are you breathing through the fullness of your life today?

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TURBO NEWS 🙌

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All flights were cancelled due to weather, good thing the next available flight is in Philly and it’s drivable and we could fly the same day. It’s fascinating how determined one can be if something important is booked, like a show, and what an opportunity to use mindfulness tools like “everything works out for the best” and it actually did. Or “these flights and the weather don’t really care about you, but it cares about the expansion of your understanding”.

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Love above waves

Hey, come feel my love
Under the sun
I will be waiting
Hey, come take my hand

Above the sand
Anticipating
Hey, come feel my love
Above the sun

I will be waiting
And when the sun goes down
I will be here
For you my love

Salty streams
Go down your face
To the sea
Salty streams

Go down your face
Rise, our love
Above the waves
Hey, come feel my love

Under the sun
I will be waiting

Every time we go to the beach we are reminded by the expanse of our tiny planet and the power of waves.

Emotions come in waves, if we aren’t skillful in navigating how they work or ignore obvious warnings, we are bound to be wiped out.

Watch your thoughts before it becomes an emotion that takes you over.

What we are most watchful of is our alignment to our highest self, graciousness and equanimity.

The waves at this particular beach was quite strong, I was just standing still and I got swept by the current and lost control of where I was. I wonder how surfers do it, shout out to my big sister, riding huge waves the wo…

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Wrote a song called Coelestia on a bike ride, I used to bike a lot everyday everywhere because this was a time that we have yet to own a car in America. I have greatly appreciated the beauty of this country as I cycled through parks, highways and bridges. Sarah and I have always wondered why the skies here seem more vast than from the other side of the world.

And as the sun was setting and the clouds are showcasing its ever unique unfolding the melodies started to stitch in my head. I would stop and hum snippets of notes on my phone and as soon as I got the time to sit, I put it together into a demo. I let Sarah hear it and she would run it through her filters. Reminds me when we cook for large gatherings, I bang out the dish and she would sprinkle some finishing touches, garnish, seasoning and such.

You are where you are and you can only know up to a certain point. Our minds are designed to seek answers but the more you find answers more questions come up.

Coelestia is about staying in …

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Every stage, every road, every laugh backstage, every embrace after a show, every familiar face in the crowd... these moments stay with us forever.

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It goes both ways; for the performer and the audience. Every show is memorable. People gather for a moment in time to be immersed in vibration of beautiful sounds. Harmonies penetrating your flesh, blood and bones and of course the merch may it be a shirt or a hat that you’ve had since 1994.

The stage is where we express the sounds we designed that we believe that would make people move. It’s a spiritual practice to come to a musical gathering, shared emotions, shared sounds and shared moments with your special some one, going through long lines, waiting and then after an hour of bliss, going home maybe a hearty vegan dinner on the way.

We remember those days because it’s an affirmation of showing up and reliving the carefree childlike wonder that music provides.

We post our concert tickets on the wall as to remember those wonderful days where the music is loud, the people are united and the rockstar is embodied by spirit.

How about you?

What was your most memorable concert?

Play thi…

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We played Sonia Middle East in Cambridge when we opened for Princess goes, the drive was always an opportunity to ponder, get inspired by the vast open road, the delightful stop overs and maybe audio books when Sarah is asleep (she prefers music most especially “Leisure”). We are coming this time around to open for an amazing band called American Vanity!

If you are in that area or at least within five mile radius, let’s make it happen and come to the show!! We got new songs and merch for you!!!! And most importantly new memories to be cherished forever.

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hello there, friend — it is New York Music Month and the city is absolutely vibing. tapioca flash mobs, rooftop sunsets, mapo tofu at midnight, and a dancefloor that never seems to end. we are right in the middle of all of it and we want to bring you in.

FROM THE BAND

NYC Is the Dancefloor. We Are the Speakers.

New York Music Month has been everything this year. The city has that particular summer charge where every block feels like a possible concert, every rooftop a possible ceremony.

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Inward state is more important than outward

At any point in your day that you feel anything negative, it’s a sign that you have entangled yourself too much on the outer or material world. It’s ok, it’s only an alarm for us to revert back to center.

To recalibrate, take a deep breath in and go back to the simplicity and the natural intelligence of nature.

If we truly bring our attention here, it’s actually pretty safe and astoundingly beautiful.

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It started with corn. Husks on, low heat, the kind of grilling that asks only for your patience and presence. The vegan burgers were going.

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The Glory of the Perfect Tomato

There’s something almost obscene about a proper heirloom tomato in June. I’m talking about the sort that makes you stop in your tracks at the market, the kind that looks like it’s been painted by someone who actually understood that vegetables aren’t supposed to be uniform orange globes.

These beauties—all lumpy shoulders and deep crimson flesh streaked with gold—they practically vibrate with smugness. And they should.

I’ve become completely unhinged about tomatoes this summer. It started innocently enough with one Cherokee Purple that I bought with the sort of reverence usually reserved for fine wine.

But now? Now I’m the sort of person who talks to tomatoes. I arrange them on the windowsill like precious stones, watching them achieve peak ripeness with the attitude of a monk tending to the mind.

The thing about a truly transcendent tomato is that it demands very little from you, which is both liberating and terrifying. A good tomato doesn’t need to be co…

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