Cutting off bad ties signifies that we are no longer willing to stay in relationships or situations that make us unhappy, no matter what challenges we may face in the future. It is a testament to the determination of wanting more for ourselves.

They each originated from a different culture, a different time, and a different mindset altogether. Yet, if you pause and think about the philosophy behind each, they all echo a similar sentiment, although are slightly different in approach.

Perfection also instills fear in us—fear of failure and fear of our personal imperfections. This fear leads us down a dark path where we tend to avoid challenging situations or competitions because failure seems unbearable.

In order to allow love to enter, our heart will have to be open to it. The wider it is open to receive, the greater the love will enter. The chance of heartbreak and disappointment will always be there… Our mind cannot separate us from love, it can only create fear.

The world we live in seldom encourages authenticity, at least not genuinely, I often feel. We may hear words of empowerment to be authentic, but when we do we are often reprimanded for being too real.

While everyone’s rock bottom may look differently, the feeling of being at rock bottom is probably very similar. It’s that feeling of utter incompetence and unworthiness, that you are as low and insignificant as a pile of rubble and you have no idea how to come back up.

I stretch out my hands, my arms,
the full length of my body
and plunge into the pools of gratitude.

As we expand our consciousness, it’s not unusual to ask why we do certain things and whether or not it supports the inner freedom we seek. Or, is it just another set of conditions we were subjected to live by?

As someone who grew up in Hong Kong during the 80’s and 90’s and has been living in Australia for nearly three decades, I often ponder questions regarding my identity: Who am I? Chinese, British overseas citizen, or Australian?

For centuries and millennia,
Imprinted with your rippled gaze
A thousand lifetimes we meet,
No less potent than the first.

Finding another who truly understands the very essence of our being is what indeed makes life worthy. And having someone who supports our deepest callings helps our soul evolve.

Another year. Another Valentine’s Day. Everywhere I look reminds me of my always single status in my 40-plus years of life. And sometimes the thought of it hurts.

As much as I believe in the existence of soulmates, what I know for sure is the staying power of a solid and steady connection built over time, which can also happen with a soulmate.

This remains the safest place, where
we perfect the cosmic play…

As human beings, we are frequently presented with scenarios that test our values, principles, and how disciplined we are in following through on being the kind of person we want to be.

It’s not easy to choose kindness in every moment of our lives. Our world can be harsh and unforgiving, full of people who operate from survival mode desperate to take from others.

Empaths feel our way through life and have compassion for all living beings. When we give, we give genuinely without expectations in return. We need a special formula of success in a world that consists of mostly monetarily driven ecosystems.

The subject of forgiveness comes up often in conversation, but I find that when it comes to the details of what that truly entails, what that process feels like is not actually talked about.

Once I accepted that I will sometimes have dark and negative thoughts, I felt relieved to just be. I understood they don’t define me.

Forgive me, children,

in my stained-glassed pride
I tried to hold us all together,
masking a disfigurement of peace—