The pain is part of my story — but it is not the story. It was my usual Thursday morning session, sitting with my trusted friend and Zen therapist. Once again, I was sharing the tragedy I believed was my life. Even though he’d heard my story countless times, he listened with deep, loving compassion.… Continue reading Victim and Villain: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Author: Lee Byrd
What Does it Mean to Walk Peace Into the World — In a Kitchen, In a Sentence, In a Breath?
No, I’m not walking 2,300 miles. But I am walking — through grief, through illness, through fear, through change, through truth-telling, and through writing. Each step becomes a meditation. With each step, I breathe, reminding myself: I am here. I belong. I am safe. In this way, even the smallest movement becomes a quiet prayer… Continue reading What Does it Mean to Walk Peace Into the World — In a Kitchen, In a Sentence, In a Breath?
Why We Cry
I have the flu, the kind of flu where my body aches with relentless pain, I cannot keep anything down, and getting out of bed takes all the energy I can muster. So, I sleep. And when sleep isn’t possible, I watch endless videos of the monks’ 2300-mile Walk for Peace. And I cry with… Continue reading Why We Cry
Welcome Home
The Companionship of Presence Since childhood, I’ve had this overwhelming need to have something to say. As a kid and a young woman, this desire led me to blurt things out, usually without thinking through what I wanted to share. And, as one can imagine, this often caused people to move away or ignore me,… Continue reading Welcome Home
Presence Asks You to Feel What Cannot Be Fixed
I am sitting here, fingers at the keyboard—aka, pen in hand—writing. Fear is present. She is almost always here. My knee-jerk reaction is to banish her. My ego voice says, Oh, my Lee! We have a ton of emails to respond to. And what about all the social media posts—people will think you are rude,… Continue reading Presence Asks You to Feel What Cannot Be Fixed
Standing Inside Love Without Effort
Yesterday, when I stopped trying to feel anything at all, I felt something I can only call home. After days, months — even years — of schlepping around the stories, the fears, the anxiety, I gave up. I surrendered. I stopped, took a deep breath, and closed my eyes. My thoughts drifted to my late… Continue reading Standing Inside Love Without Effort
1 · 1 · 1 — A New Year’s Meditation & Ritual
January 1, 2026 Today is a rare convergence:1 · 1 · 1 Not a call to start over,but an invitation to begin from center, from where we are now. A Soft 1 · 1 · 1 Meditation Take a moment. Place one hand on your heart, one on your belly. Let your breath slow. On… Continue reading 1 · 1 · 1 — A New Year’s Meditation & Ritual
I Choose Love
She’s standing there, before the veil, on the mystic threshold between the worlds. She pauses and looks back at the world — her world — as she has known it. And like a movie playing on a great screen, she sees it all: every event, every sigh, every tear, every laugh, every pause as she… Continue reading I Choose Love
Winter Solstice: Rebirth Without Effort
The Winter Solstice marks the return of the light, but it also honors the wisdom of the dark. It reminds us that rebirth doesn’t require effort — only honesty. This morning I woke with a familiar ache in my gut and heart, a pain I’ve schlepped around for many years. When it made its appearance… Continue reading Winter Solstice: Rebirth Without Effort
The Courage to Tell the Truth
What Ram Dass, the Heart, and the Throat Taught Me About Real Relationship Ram Dass once said: The relationships that are the most exciting are where the contract is to share truth. Many relationships don’t have that kind of a contract. They have a contract of you won’t threaten my ego and I won’t threaten… Continue reading The Courage to Tell the Truth