If I’m being stark about it, not so well. It’s a fragile place that needs every bit of help. I could definitely do more to come to its aid or refrain from doing things that are damaging the environment.

It makes my heart sing, being out in nature, especially when walking in it. I never cease to be amazed at its beauty and I sometimes lose myself in it, letting go that separateness.

So many good answers today. For me the moment that says it all is when a baby notices its hands for the first time. It’s not just the joy of seeing them but the sense that the hand is just part of the rest of the world. There’s no sense of any separateness between baby and world. We spend a lifetime trying to grasp that moment again in our own lives. I guess maybe it’s the grasping that hinders us.

This is a great question. I ask something similar most days. Sometimes I get a good answer. So I am learning today to keep asking the question! In part we live by our questions.

Saying yes to good seasonal cheer. I caught myself resisting this coming from my spouse this morning.

Occasionally I stop and appreciate how everything and everyone connects. This is a good question to remind me how that is important.

That I touch the world around me and those within it in a way that leaves all on balance a bit better than if I wasn’t here. For the world, I think if everyone did that, the change would be phenomenal.

At the physical level decluttering helps me. At the mind level it helps when I curtail the things that suck my attention. On the spiritual level, mindfulness and meditation simplify my mind considerably.

A fire. I just get great joy out of the ritual of lighting it, the fragrance, the crackle and hiss, the amber glow and, yes, the heat. I’ve been known to light fires on hot days. I get into a meditative state from it, a bit like when I have a dog nuzzled beside me. A few months ago I would have written this piece about my dog but alas he’s gone to another dimension and I do miss him.

Great question and it stumped me for a while so I sat with it. For me fear is important. It helps stop me doing something that may be harmful. But my fears move frequently into the unhelpful zone. So if I was posing the question, instead, of what would I do if my fear was more in balance I’d say I’d reach out to more people and take risks on rejection.

My spouse and my adult kids. A source of joy, love and purpose for me and keep me on the right track.

I no longer need to stand in the way of my experience of life with a clouded head of over thinking

I no longer need to hold on to the grief of recent years but can let it flow through.

I no longer need to keep thinking of the next thing; the aah but; the “if only” coiling around my heart.

Eating a bowl of porridge. A daily occurrence. But spending more time today to savour it.

I’ll settle for asking how they are and listen. The listening and communication of that listening moves it away from an habitual, routine thing. If I ask how they truly are they’ll run away. I will see what a listening mindset does today. Interesting.

This is something I’ve been working on for a few years: a work in progress. I often catch myself not only wanting to be right but wanting to show that I am right. There’s a light feeling for me in letting that go. When I do I can be much closer to the other person.

Thanks. Your contribution is a timely reminder of the many times I’ve also experienced this.

Thank. That’s a good quote, very much to the point.