Blog

This post concludes the three-part series detailing six virtues I am working to cultivate in my life with the intent of contributing to society by being a better human. I can’t help but wonder if the actions of some in our political organizations can’t be motivated by greed and power. And as I notice these faults in others, I challenge myself to increase the opposite in the way I choose to live—with simplicity and generosity.

In today’s blog post, I share a personal story of a falling out this weekend and how it served to remind me of how I can practice one of my chosen virtues - Honesty. I do a pretty good job at not telling outright lies, as Mom and Dad did a good job in my wee years of instilling that yucky feeling down in the pit of my stomach each time I told a little fib. However, I realize that it is the area of self-deception that could use a bit more focus and attention in my life. I’ll share with you how I go about uncovering these areas, as they can be tricky little buggers to bring to light and resolve.

While snipping and stashing away my lemongrass cuttings before the cold evenings of Autumn begin to set in, my mind travels back to when I first began to enjoy lemongrass in my tea. It was a couple of years ago while in a lovely little dining room at the historic and romantic El Albergue hotel in Ollantaytambo, Peru. I was there for our annual Travel to Transform retreat and each morning we would meander down to the dining room to start our day with a fresh cooked meal and a cup of coca tea to help adjust to the change in altitude. They had a table in the dining room where they set out bowls of freshly cut lemongrass, fresh mint leaves and dried coca leaves (for assisting with the change in altitude), as well as fresh fruit, yogurt, granola and other breakfast goodies.

The days have been a little crazy lately. I can’t seem to find enough time for all I want to accomplish. This is a challenge I’ve worked on for years and while some weeks I deal with it better than others, my monkey mind was really chattering away this morning...