What is it to be

Truly Me?

Asks she

Am I to

tear away the outer wrap,

like a frozen pizza,

ready for the rack?

Or Am I to

swaddle

my soft spot,

my blind spot,

in cottony layers

of protection?

What is it to be

Truly Me?

Asks she

Am I to

bow to the vow,

to love my Self

above all others?

Or Am I to

kneel and bend,

in servitude

of All That Is?

What is it to be

Truly Me?

Asks she

The answers echo against

the walls of her soul,

as they travel

to the depths, where all of it is true.

At first, Shrek struggled to accept himself; he thought that because he was an Ogre, nobody would ever love him. He assumed everyone would hate him and so he found it hard to love or accept himself. He had a negative view of who he was.

Fiona lived with a secret—she went from princess to Ogre every day when the sun went down. She was terrified that people would find out who she was and consequently judge her. She felt like an outcast and a freak; she couldn’t accept the fact that she was part princess and part Ogre.

The turning point for both of them came when they met Donkey and, of course, each other.

What does this have to do with self-acceptance? First of all, weaving my favorite characters into a blog post is so much fun! Second of all, don’t be fooled by animated movies. A lot of them deliver powerful messages about life. And no, I haven’t been smoking the wacky tobacky.

Take a look at some of the lessons that Shrek and Fiona deliver (all with...

What’s the fastest path to joy and peace? Laughter. From the very first time I had a giggle fit at the age of six and subsequently split my head open on the baseboard from laughing so hard, I was hooked. Laughter did something for my soul that nothing else could and it still guides me through all my challenges in life. This is why I firmly subscribe to this tenet: laughter is the best medicine.

And that ain’t no joke.

If laughter and humor is so great, then how can we use this transformational elixir to heal our wounds?

1. Go back to your childhood. Don’t worry this is not about uncovering any hidden psychological hangups—we are looking for the funny. What made you laugh back then? If your uncle slipped down the stairs one winter and you found that hysterical—that’s one example. Did your brother pee on your babysitter? What made you laugh until it hurt? Bring up these memories and join in on the fun again. Think about those times and...

Clutter interferes with our life in many different ways. Regardless of the type of clutter—physical, mental or emotional—it creates a barrier between us and our natural flow. When clutter clogs up our life, we pay the price. If you’re feeling particularly stuck right now it could be time for a major de-clutter fest.

Types of clutter

1. Physical

The body. If we have a cluttered body that essentially means that we are stuffing our veins, arteries and other pathways with debris. This can happen with too much alcohol, fried foods, or processed food with chemicals and additives. When we’re cluttered in the body things don’t flow—maybe we’re constipated or we have high blood pressure. Live by the basic rules of health to de-clutter: water, fibre, exercise. These guidelines may seem overly simplistic but if we don’t have the foundation, we don’t have the house, am I right?

What to do?

Drink more water—carry a water...

Don’t leave me hanging.

Hanging from the cliff, dangling over the chasm of wanting.

Looking down but trying not to look down.

Don’t look at me now because I’m ashamed.

I hang my head because you caught me. Caught me reaching out.

Caught me needing, kneeling over my own glass statue. Shielding it with my wary embrace.

Don’t look at me now—my face is embarrassed.

You caught me between poses.

In between stages. In between rehearsals.

Suspended between carefully orchestrated deliberations.

Don’t judge what I’m doing. I do it with blindness.

Without a reliable script.

The Response-

I love you.

I love you through your uncertainty,

your desperate grasping of another,

frantic groping for a plug to stop this sink.

I love you.

I love you through the shiny mirages,

the race to the horizon,

The realization of an empty sandy landscape.

I love you.

I love you through the utter humiliation of obvious need,

your naked body in...