Hi Everyone 👋 Yesterday was a full day. Not because I had to do any of it. Because I wanted to. I chopped and stacked wood. Physical work that gets the blood moving and reminds me I'm still alive. I washed bed linen from the retreat center and hung it out to dry. Mundane? Maybe. But there's something about fresh sheets blowing in the wind that settles something in me. I fault-found an electrical issue and fixed a broken belt on a tractor engine. The kind of work that makes you think. That tests you. That gives you that quiet satisfaction when you finally figure it out. And of course, the standard stuff. Creating posts and videos for this community. Walking my dog. Cooking dinner. Here's what I've learned at 66 with health that hasn't always been kind to me... Keeping busy isn't about filling time. It's about staying in the game. Physical work keeps my body lubricated. Mental work keeps my mind sharp. Purposeful work keeps my spirit alive. I'm not talking about running yourself into the ground. I'm talking about showing up. Doing the things that need doing. Finding meaning in the ordinary moments. Because the alternative - sitting still, waiting, letting life pass by - that's not living. That's just existing. The jobs we do, no matter how small, they keep us moving along our pathway. And honestly? That's everything. So today, I'll do it all again. Not because I have to. Because I get to. And that makes all the difference. What's keeping you busy today? Share below. I'd love to hear what's moving you forward. With Love ❤️ Always Mark

Ahhhhh, technology ☹️ My Mac has frozen again right in the middle of writing today’s learning post . An hour or so of writing lost to the Fizen Technology Gods 🥲 My very old Mac is gone into a forced meditation so I’m reverting to my equally outdated iPhone to try to post today. I need to walk away, to breathe, to get out in nature with my grandson and build a bamboo roof for the treehouse I made for him 😊 Here are some photos from our beach day yesterday and the treehouse 😊

Hi Everyone 👋 We have learned to ground ourselves in the body. Now we must talk about something we have all but forgotten... the practice of radical, unapologetic rest. My dearest friends, I remember the first time I heard about the Buddhist concept of Uposatha, days of renewed commitment to the practice, to letting go of the usual distractions. But more than that, I think of the simple, profound teaching of the Noble Silence. It is not just about being quiet. It is about stopping. Completely. A rest that is not a luxury, but a form of deep listening to the universe, and to ourselves. In the Buddhist tradition, there is a deep understanding that we are not human doings; we are human beings. Yet we have lost this. We have traded the sacred pause for the endless scroll. We have forgotten that ceasing our striving is not a failure but the very ground of wisdom. If you are exhausted, and I mean the kind of tired that lives in your bones, the kind that makes your very cells feel heavy, it is not a sign that you are broken. It is a sign that you have been running on empty for far too long. It is a signal from your own true nature, begging you to come home to yourself. And the only cure is rest. But here is the hard truth...most of us have forgotten how. We have unlearned the art of simply being. Even when we stop moving, our minds are still churning, still planning, still worrying. We lie down to sleep and the day replays on a loop. We take a day off and spend it feeling guilty for not being "productive." Rest has become a forgotten language. And it is time we started to speak it again. 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆'𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲: 𝗡𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 - Choose a window of time. It might be an hour, a morning, or a whole day. Mark it as sacred. This is your retreat. A small monastery of one. - Build your container. Find a space where you will not be interrupted. Turn off the devices. Let the world buzz on without you. It will survive. Tell your loved ones you are stepping out of time for a little while. This is your permission slip. - Now, do nothing. This is the hardest part, isn't it? The mind will rebel. It will scream for a hit of dopamine. It will tell you that you are wasting precious time. It will try to convince you that you are lazy, that you are not enough. Your job is simply to sit with that noise. To let it pass through you like a storm. To practice, even for a few minutes, the profound art of letting the world be. - If you cannot do nothing, do something gentle. Do not mistake this for more productivity. This is about nourishment. Read a few pages of a book that feels like a hug. Walk outside and notice the way the light falls through the leaves. Drink a cup of tea as if it is the most important thing in the world. Cook a simple meal and feel the warmth of the stove. The only rule: it must feed your spirit, not your to-do list. - And just notice. What comes up when you finally stop? Is it guilt? A deep, unexpected sadness? Or a sudden wave of peace? Don't try to fix it. Don't try to push it away. Just sit with it. Let it be. This is the practice. - Then, return. When your time is up, come back gently. Notice how you feel. Has the world fallen apart because you stepped away? No. It's still turning. But maybe, just maybe, you are turning a little differently now. A little lighter. A little more whole.

Hi Everyone 👋 This morning I came across this sentence by Thich Nhat Hanh in a blog post I made some years ago after my out-of-body death experience.... "The amount of happiness that you have depends on the amount of freedom you have in your heart", And my first thought wasn't "Wow, how beautiful." It was.... I had no idea what that actually meant until I wasn't in my body to feel it. Before this, I'd have told you my heart was open. I'd have told you I love freely, I smile through the rough patches, I'm a generally happy guy. And I wasn't lying. I was happy, mostly. But there's a difference between a window you've cracked for fresh air and a window you've taken clean off the hinges. The cracked one still filters the world. The missing one lets everything in, the good, the garbage, the leaf that smacks you in the face. Here's what I used to think freedom was..... Having enough love to give, having good relationships, not letting the bad days drag me under. That's not nothing. But it's still managed freedom. It's freedom within a container. What I saw in that ambulance, from wherever that was, wasn't a glowing version of me with a name tag. It wasn't "Mark the husband, Mark the writer, Mark with the stuff to do." It was just awareness. Bare. Watching. Completely unbothered by whether those heart compressions worked or not. And that told me more about non-attachment than any meditation cushion ever did. Because nothing in that moment needed to be fixed. Not even my own body. So now, I'm not sitting here with answers. I'm sitting here with coffee. And I mean actually sitting with it......watching the steam peel off the surface, pulling me into the smell before I even take a sip. I'm watching mt dog brush past my legs like I'm just another piece of furniture, which is exactly the right amount of importance I should have right now. I'm watching the leaves outside let go without negotiation—yellow, brown, a little green still clinging, and the wind doesn't ask permission.

Hi everyone 👋 1. Being kind when you had nothing to gain Kindness creates a positive impact that can remain long after the moment is gone. 2. Spending time with the people you love Time with loved ones becomes more precious because we can never get those moments back. 3. Saying "I love you" while you still can Some words become more meaningful when they are spoken before it is too late. 4. Forgiving someone Forgiveness can release the heart from carrying anger and resentment. 5. Helping someone who needed you A small act of help can mean more to another person than you may ever realize. 6. Choosing honesty Even when honesty is difficult, living without the burden of deception brings peace. 7. Learning something new Growth does not have an age limit. Every new skill or lesson expands the way we experience life. 8. Taking care of your health Your body carries you through every experience, so caring for it is an investment in your future. 9. Spending time in nature Sometimes stepping away from noise and simply observing the natural world reminds us how beautiful simplicity can be. 10. Saying no when something goes against your values Protecting your principles is more valuable than constantly trying to please everyone. 11. Giving without expecting something in return Generosity teaches us that happiness can come from what we give, not only from what we receive. 12. Making time for your dreams Life becomes richer when we allow ourselves to pursue something meaningful instead of endlessly postponing it. 13. Apologizing when you were wrong A sincere apology can heal relationships and strengthen character. 14. Living in the present moment The past cannot be changed and the future is uncertain. The present is the only moment we can truly experience. The Buddha taught that life is impermanent, which means our time with people, opportunities, and experiences is limited. Understanding impermanence can teach us to appreciate what we have now instead of waiting until it is gone. A meaningful life is built through the choices we make while we still have the opportunity to make them.