For the last four-plus months, life has placed me in a master class about patience. I’ve had to admit my expectation about how long, debilitating, and painful knee replacement surgery recovery was going to be had nothing to do with the reality I’ve been experiencing. And I’ve had to repeatedly readjust my expectations. When is the pain and discomfort going to slack off? When will I be able to walk without a limp? When will I be able to… fill in the blank. The answer I’ve had to become comfortable with is, “not yet. Not just yet.” The Trap of Expectations This morning, I finally remembered something I was so

The Self We Think We Are There’s a “person” you’re intimately familiar with, probably more familiar to you than any other. An Imaginary self. Strangely, as real and ever-present as this “person” seems, this creature doesn’t exist in real life. It only exists as a thought—one you likely spend a great deal of time with. Who could it be? It’s you! Or more accurately, it’s the mental picture of yourself you carry with you. This picture is made up of memories, doubts, wounds, experiences, and various delusions, both depressive and grandiose. What I’ve just described is, of course, your ego. Why the Ego Feels So Real Your ego exists for

This morning, I was in class with Mavis Karn and Nikon Gormley. Mavis was telling a story that was a perfect expression of her breathtaking compassion, and a thought came to me: “What a beautiful heart she has.” The thought that came a second later told me something else. “Wait a second, Isn’t that silly? How can one heart be more beautiful than another? They’re all made of exactly the same love.”

Here’s a question that may have occurred to you at some point: why does it seem easier to love some people than others? The answer is so simple it may surprise you.