Discovering Your True Self
Inspiration for this month’s illustration came from a recent dream. In the dream a voice explains: Occasionally, sea turtle eggs find their way into eagles nests. When they hatch . . . The voice trails off as a baby sea…
Michelle Peticolas
Singing Joy to the World
In the dark of December comes the gradual returning of light. It is a time for celebration and joy. One way to express that joy is to sing in community. I love to sing. I guess that’s because I grew…
Appreciating the Holidays
November is a transition month taking us from the vibrant colors of Fall to the somber grays of Winter. It is a time of rest and renewal, when the earth sleeps. Even in California this is true as the light…
Cultivating Courage to Face Fear
Going after our dream is a little bit like a Halloween adventure. We don our costumes – a vision of ourselves — and set off to claim the promised rewards. Along the way we may encounter dark shadows and scary…
Changing Time
September Summer is over! School buses crowd the morning streets. Remember how that felt when we were children? Paradise lost! Similar feelings arise in me as I mentally gear up for the faster pace of Autumn. “Wait!!!, My soul cries,…
Creating Community
August — time to connect with friends and family! This summer I took some time off and went on retreat to a Sufi center in New Mexico. I’ve been doing this on and off for over 30 years, but two…
Allowing Time
In last month’s blog I explored the practice of self-care as a way to nurture the seedlings of our life, e.g. work, relationships, kids, creative endeavors. Nurturing these seedlings helps to ensure a bountiful garden. When we approach them only…
Nurturing Seedlings of Self-Care
JUNE! Seeds have been sown, the planting is done, but the new growth is still tender and fragile. Attention and loving action are needed to keep the plants alive. My life is very like a garden. I plant the seeds…
Finding Balance in the Cycles of Life
Back in the beginning, when I first began screening my film series, Secrets of Life and Death, I held the belief people would come to an event about death only in the fall and winter when the days are short and…
Should We Have More Control Over When We Die?
Modeled after Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act, the California End of Life Option Act, SB128 would allow a mentally competent, terminally ill adult in the final stages of his/her disease to request medication from a physician to bring about a…
Bringing More Balance to Our Life
“April showers bring May flowers.” I learned this ditty when I was growing up in New Jersey where spring rains can be relentless. The phrase gave a reassuring promise that good things follow difficulty. California has been experiencing a drought…
Going for Your Dreams While Letting Go
In the act of committing to your dream, you set in motion a chain of amazing reactions . . . The moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would…
Love Begins with You
Love begins with loving oneself. When we love ourselves, loving others comes easy. Celebrate this Valentine’s Day by pampering yourself. Taking care of yourself is not selfish, it is smart. When we are rested, relaxed, and satisfied, we fill our…
A Remedy for Too Much Busyness!
I have a cold. It’s a good sign that I’ve been pushing myself too hard. My body is telling me in no uncertain terms to take a break and slow down. Naturally, I resisted for the first two days, so…
Crafting Change With Intention
Everything changes, everything is impermanent! Rick Fields said these word in my first film, Facing Death . . . with open eyes. It was just two weeks before he died. His words come back to me now as I review the…
Seasons Greeting!
Wishing you a safe and peaceful holiday and happy and healthy new year!
Mastering the Challenge of Change
I DON’T LIKE CHANGE!! Recently, I had to buy a NEW computer. I had to. I committed to finishing the fourth film in the Secrets of Life and Death documentary series (working title: Life After Loss) and my old Mac…
Bonding Grief
All living creatures come equipped with some form of a distress signaling system. It is a matter of survival and happiness. In his book Buddha Brain, psychologist Rick Hansen described three evolutionary stages of the brain that provide different signaling…
The Physicality of Grief
Grief is often described as a normal emotional response to loss. The problem with this definition is that we inhabit an emotion-phobic culture. Uncontrolled emotions are associated with being weak, unable to cope, and not being in command. Thus the…
Don’t Grieve Alone
We live in a culture that values emotional control and therefore does not provide much usable information on handling grief. When someone experiences a profound loss, it can feel very risky to be around others. Few know how to respond…