I began meditating in 1972 and although it made me feel better, I struggled to establish a consistent meditation practice. Each year my new year’s resolutions included “Meditate!” in the top three (vying with lose weight and exercise for #1).

During the 80’s and 90’s as I juggled career, family, and eventually became a stay-at-home-mom, I continued to study different techniques but I just didn’t resonate with the woo-woo, chakra balancing, aura seeing, material that was dominating the field.

Nor did I want to be identified as a Buddhist or a Yogi or an anything. I just wanted to feel less angry, and frustrated. My vision of who I wanted to be and what I was actually doing and saying were very different.

So, I continued looking for answers. I studied Christianity, Buddhism, Yoga, and Judaism. In fact, I helped found a non-profit dedicated to exploring and learning about the different paths to transformation. (We closed it doors in May of 2012 after seven years of exploration and fun.)

In 1997 I found a technique that I actually practiced regularly and it began to transform me and my relationships. A few years later I found a teacher who simply said, “Try this. If it works, use it. If it doesn’t, don’t.”

Yes! Finally someone not trying to indoctrinate me but encouraging me to find what worked for me. And this is the tradition of teaching I try to carry on.