Columns

There’s something so satisfying about building up strength and endurance during those indoor classes all winter long and then taking our hard-earned fitness outside for a test spin in the real world.

In an era where calls for personal responsibility are becoming more popular, I would love to hear our President and elected officials call on Americans to lay off the burgers, sodas, fries, white bread and cheese dip and get out for a morning walk or evening yoga class.

In nature, some animals migrate with the seasons; others happily hibernate or embrace other adaptive measures. But by exploring our full range of alternatives, we stand to benefit rather than suffer from the constant flow of changes and challenges in our lives.

My list of seven relatively simple things a person can do to lighten or offset some of his or her earthly burdens.

While we’re asking questions about how we can make our economy more stable, it’s important that we also ask equally challenging questions about how we can make better, more responsible use of the natural resources and systems on which our entire economy relies.

If Oprah has trouble carving out a self-sustaining life balance, then is it really any surprise that, from time to time, the rest of us do, too?

It’s often tempting to assume that if a little of something is good, then a lot will be better. And nowhere does this assumption tend to work against us more reliably than in the areas of work and money.

There is no better way to expand willingness, I find, than by constantly expanding your knowledge and perspectives.

Even during the best of times, the turn of a year is a natural time to reflect on what we’d like to see changed, and what we’d like to do differently. I think this particular New Year presents especially rich opportunities in that department.

Joni Mitchell always did have the poet’s gift of summing up great truths in simple phrases.

If we’re willing to lift our heads enough to see beyond the daily global-recession headlines, then I would argue that the future is bright indeed.

I step outside into the cold night air and look up at the stars, thinking about the countless generations of ancestors who’ve done the same — some of them sleepless with worry, perhaps, but more of them called by the mystery and beauty of the night sky to look up, to notice, to feel lucky to be in this particular place and time, and to feel the wonder of being alive.

Once you understand the stages of power, it becomes quite easy to recognize the type of power that you and those around you are currently wielding, and what type of power you might focus on developing next.

Looking back 10 years from now, I believe we’ll all be struck not so much by how forward thinking and revolutionary these contemporary medical approaches were, but that any of us were ever remotely satisfied with a medical system that did not embrace these self-evident values.

Look up the word “policy” in the dictionary and you’ll find that the definition involves making plans, following guiding principles and pursuing a determined course of action – all for the sake of getting things done in an expedient, prudent manner.

OK, I realize I’m dating myself here, but I’m hoping that at least some of you will join me in remembering that cult classic kids’ album Free to Be…You and Me . Masterminded by Marlo Thomas and Friends, and accompanied by a singalong book, it was played endlessly (to some parents’ chagrin) by a whole generation of kids in the ’70s, and as a result, it permeated our collective memory.

Each of us is first and foremost a citizen of the earth. And so on some level, our deepest responsibility (and privilege) lies in making ourselves of service—even in some small way—within this realm.

Before you can comfortably and thoroughly unpack with someone else, you need to master the art of unpacking on your own, which ultimately means getting to know yourself in a deep way.

A body that’s getting what it needs can bounce back from early damage and become even better than it was in its youth. But a body that’s not well taken care of tends to start showing and feeling its age early on.

It’s only by showing up fully for what’s going on in our lives right here and now — and for the choices and commitments that we’ve decided are important to us — that we get to collect on the glowy, energizing, feel-good satisfaction that makes life worthwhile.

Living clean relies on more than just making smart choices about what we put in our mouths and on our skin. It relies on a clean environment – and a clear conscience.