Elizabeth Lesser Quotes
-
But when I learned about the dangers of rejection or attack, I thought, it's time to change this. What if we faced any pain we had caused each other and, instead of rejection or attack, could we listen? Could we forgive? Could we merge?
-
When you approach spirituality as an adventure of being alive, you start as you would any adventure--with a sense of mystery and not-knowing. Instead of searching for answers that make you feel safe, you set out into the vastness of life and death, with a willingness to continually grow. You open up to the possibility that your ordinary life is an extraordinary adventure, and that your joys and sorrows have meaning. Spiritual practice becomes your rudder, offering direction and insight and discretion as you venture into the unknown.
-
Things do fall apart. It is in their nature to do so. When we try to protect ourselves from the inevitability of change, we are not listening to the soul. We are listening to our fear of life and death, our lack of faith, our smaller ego's will to prevail. To listen to the soul is to stop fighting with life-to stop fighting when things fall apart, when they don't go our way, when we get sick, when we are betrayed or mistreated or misunderstood. To listen to the soul is to slow down, to feel deeply, to see ourselves clearly, to surrender to discomfort and uncertainty, and to wait.
-
I accept that life is uncertain--that the goal is not to become more certain about anything but to relax more into the mystery of not knowing what will come next. And then, miracle of miracles, out there in the deep and uncertain water, I come into a peaceful knowing--a faithful wisdom that surpasses control and certainty.
-
There is an art to grieving. To grieve well the loss of anyone or anything--a parent, a love, a child, an era, a home, a job--is a creative act. It takes attention and patience and courage. But many of us do not know how to grieve. We were never taught, and we don't see examples of full-bodied grieving around us. Our culture favors the fast-food model of mourning--get over it quick and get back to work; affix the bandage of "closure" and move on.
-
Each one of us regardless of our situation, is in our search of our most authentic, vital, generous and wise self.
-
It seems to be almost a law of physics, that the winds of change awaken fear and fundamentalism.
-
We'll never change everyone's minds. We're not supposed to.
-
It is the acceptance of death that has finally allowed me to choose life.
-
If I pull from places of faith, joy and gratitude, then I have the wind of creativity behind me. And, my work in the world is much more effective.
-
There is no one alive who has not wanted to go back to sleep.
-
I think that life is a friggin' magic carpet ride - it's amazing. Everything about life is mysterious and beautiful and touching and tragic and lovely and mystical.
-
What mothers do - they act with love, at least good mothers do! They have a spirit of strong, fierce, protective energy - the way a mother would put her life on the line for her children - we need to put our life on the line for each other.
-
In the true spirit of the holidays, let the darkness of your moods lead you back up to the light, and when New Year's rolls around, your resolution will be tinged with new authenticity and power.
-
Grief is an expression that you loved well.
-
How strange that the nature of life is change, yet the nature of human beings is to resist change.
-
I'm very much a family person, and that's always my first priority.
-
I'm very committed to my family and my town. My biggest local commitment are my children, my husband, my home and my grandchildren.
-
I think diversity of thinking and healing traditions from around the world are good for us. The movement itself has evolved enormously and it's been a thrill to be part of it.
-
Anyone whose lifestyle may frighten you or whose point of view makes smoke come out of your ears.
-
Grief is good...it is a sign of how well we have loved.
-
We can be the one to take the first courageous step toward the other and to do something or to try to do something other than rejection or attack. We can do this with our siblings and our mates and our friends and our colleagues. We can do this with the disconnection and the discord all around us.
-
I've realized that aging is the younger cousin of dying. ... How much time do I have left? We become aware that we're on the downside of the mountain, coasting toward our final days.
-
One does not practice meditation to become a great meditator. We meditate to wake up and live, to become skilled at the art of living.