wellness

Life’s a Mess, Channel ‘Pura Vida’

Understanding the nuances of “pura vida” made me wonder what if, in the face of all the chaos and uncertainty and rage and sadness, we were to embrace it as our daily mantra?

Kintsugi Repair as Metaphor

Artist ciriacaerre made a video of repairing a smashed vase using kintsugi, the Japanese art that celebrates the scars and breaks. She, and other artist, eloquently describe its greater meaning…

A Bed Surrounded by Flowers Makes a Dreamy Respite

When we stumbled on thisimage by photographer Jill Burrow, we thought, ‘Ah yes. We’d love to sleep surrounded by flowers, especially now, after months of guarded and circumscribed living.’ Looking closely, we found permission to do it…

Over-Glasses Sunglasses for Instant RX Sunglasses and Virus Protection

I first became enamored of sunglasses worn OVER prescription glasses when I saw my friend Fran Black* wearing a pair; I suddenly noticed that there was a pair of glasses underneath her sunglasses. That’s just what I need, I thought, so I hunted a pair down. They made my life way easier. I didn’t have…

Yoko Ono’s Instruction For Navigating Our Changed Lives

In advance of reopening after months of coronavirus lockdown, the Metropolitan Museum of Art posted words by Yoko Ono on its facade. She created them in response to Covid-19 as an essential instruction.

A Young Poet’s Fierce Wisdom on Navigating Darkness

Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray and Emily Saliers put their finger on what makes poet/rapper Kae Tempest so unique: “…their willingness to love humanity through the darkness makes me hopeful”. That comes through powerfully in these two spoken word pieces and this short powerful interview. Words to live by.

Carl Jung and Mary Oliver on Touching Nature from the Inside and Outside

This morning we came across extraordinary words from Carl Jung. They describe a wholeness of experience that antidotes the very modern idea that we are each self-contained. Soon after, a Mary Oliver poem echoed it…

Van Gogh and Gary Snyder Teach “Tree Intensity of Mind”

Recently, the actual living trees that were the subject of van Gogh’s last painting in 1890 were discovered near the small French town where he lived. A photograph of the trees superimposed with the painting brings to life Gary Snyder’s idea of “tree intensity of mind”, and amplifies our own experience mightily.

Kaffe Fassett on the Healing Power of Color

Color artist Kaffe Fassett likens color to oxygen, “…like breathing”. In this short video, he describes how he relies on color for healing, something it seems, we can all do:

How to Dispel Worry (Mary Oliver)

Worry and overwhelm are common emotions these days. This morning, we found two simple things that shifted us out of them.

Powerful Scientific Imaging Shows Why Masks Work

This remarkable video captures what is normally invisible to our eyes — how masks work to slow airborne infection carried on our breath — and resolves much conflicting information about them. Essential viewing for those that wear them and those that don’t.

4 Ways to Shift Your Dark View from Yoko Ono

The news is so very terrible, it is weighing on everyone we know. Then we stumbled on some heartening messages from Yoko Ono in our archive that help to shift the view.

Atul Gawande’s Solid Science: 5 Keys to Lifting Lockdown

Amidst contradictory guidance from the government, we’re putting our faith in wiseman physician Atul Gawande’s carefully-reasoned approach.

The Onion and Riz Ahmed on The Pressure to Be Productive During Lockdown

Perspective we need: The Onion’s sublimely funny, spot-on commentary on the pressure to be creative during the “free time” of quarantining + Riz Ahmed’s wise view.

Slow Down at a Traditional Japanese Spa with a John O’Donohue Blessing

This steamy virtual Japanese “sento” bath somehow helps us to calm and slow to the pace we need to be. As does this John O’Donohue Blessing.

Easy-to-Make DIY Clear Face Shield

Tokujin Yoshioka created a simple, easy-to-make face shield held in place with ordinary eyewear. It gives an added measure of protection against Covid-19.

Yayoi Kusama’s Defiant Message To Covid-19

Today the very uplifting MESSAGE FROM YAYOI KUSAMA TO THE WHOLE WORLD flew over our transom: a poem that acts as a call to arms, waking us from the shock of quarantine…A healing dose of Kusama’s own Art Medicine.

The Discomfort You Feel May Be Grief in Disguise

A therapist friend emailed a surprising article from the Harvard Business Review. Several weeks into the pandemic, it is one of the most helpful things I’ve read.

Practical Ways to Alleviate Toilet Paper Anxiety and Hoarding

We’ve read a lot theories for the toilet paper hoarding that has marked the Coronavirus pandemic. We have a few of our own + viable alternatives.

4-Minute Workout For Sheltering in Place (Like an Hour at the Gym)

This simple four-minute workout routine yields the same benefits as working out in the gym for an hour. It’s proving terrific exercise when sheltering in place due to the Coronavirus.

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