“Play is a profound biological process. It has evolved over eons in many animal species to promote survival. It shapes the brain and makes animals smarter and more adaptable. In higher animals, it fosters empathy and makes possible complex social groups. For us, play lies at the core of creativity and innovation.” Stuart Brown M.D.,…
Author: Mindful Leader
Cecilia B. Loving is Deputy Commissioner/Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at the NYC Fire Department. She also served as an attorney for the NYC Commission on Human Rights, and was a litigator at Patterson Belknap; Kramer Levin; and the Legal Aid Society. She is founder of the Mindfulness Group at FDNY, as well as Co-Chair of the NYC Bar’s first Mindfulness and Well-Being Committee. In addition to obtaining her Juris Doctor from NYU School of Law, Cecilia obtained her BFA from Howard University, MFA from UCLA and M.Div from NY Theological Seminary. She has written several books, including Prayers for Those Standing on the Edge of Greatness; God is a Brown Girl Too; God is a Lawyer Too; and Seeing Myself as God Sees Me. She also writes blogs and articles, including “Mindfulness: Being in the Now Without Bias, Blame or Shame” (Catalyst, April 19, 2018).
OUR STORY IS A COMPOSITION OF PARTS CIRCLING ONE ANOTHER, A GALAXY ACCOMPANYING MEMORY: August 12-16, 2019
“As I began developing parts out of pieces, I found that I preferred them unconnected— to be related but not to touch, to circle, not line up— because the story of this prayer was the story of a shattered, fractured perception resulting from a shattered, splintered life. The novel turned out to be a composition…
“THE PIECES (AND ONLY THE PIECES) ARE WHAT BEGIN THE CREATIVE PROCESS”: August 11, 2019
“I once knew a woman named Hannah Peace. I say “knew,” but nothing could be less accurate. I was perhaps four years old when she was in the town where I lived. I don’t know where (or even if) she is now, or to whom she was related then. . . . . I have…
EVEN IN YOUR QUIETEST MOMENTS, YOU ARE WORTHY OF WITNESS: August 10, 2019
“There was a kindness, a generosity in how she sat with her characters as they argued and made love and killed and cared for children and fed strangers. There was a patience in her presence, in her attention. There was something about that absolute narrative presence that communicated this: You are worthy to be seen….
SILENCE BLESSES ALL THE LONELY PARTS AND FILLS THEM WITH THE LIGHT OF BELONGING: August 9, 2019
“There is a loneliness that can be rocked. Arms crossed, knees drawn up; holding, holding on, this motion, unlike a ship’s, smooths and contains the rocker. It’s an inside kind— wrapped tight like skin. Then there is a loneliness that roams. No rocking can hold it down. It is alive, on its own. A dry…
I RIDE THE AIR: August 8, 2019
“If you surrendered to the air, you could ride it.” Toni Morrison, from Song of Solomon In the power of being, there is only love. Breathe in the love that is everywhere present. Allow it to breathe as you, as nothing and nowhere, as everyone and everything, as something and someone, as light that radiates…
“LANGUAGE ALONE IS MEDITATION” – TONI MORRISON: August 7, 2019
THIS IS A LISTENING BLOG LISTEN BY CLICKING HERE In 1 Corinthians, we acknowledge victory, saying “thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” So “when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written”: ‘Death is swallowed…
I TAKE IT SLOWLY, MINDFULLY, COMPASSIONATELY: August 6, 2019
“You should try to maintain mindfulness of every activity and perception through the day, starting with the first perception when you awake and ending with the last thought before you fall asleep. This is an incredibly tall goal to shoot for. Don’t expect to be able to achieve this work soon. Just take it slowly…
YES!: August 5, 2019
“YES! I can surrender the inexhaustible supply of the universe. YES! I can run the race and not grow weary. YES! I can move mountains with the faith of a mustard seed. YES! I can leap and the net will appear. YES! I can do even greater things than Jesus. YES! I am more than…
MAY WE EAT WITH MINDFULNESS: August 4, 2019
1. May we be aware that food is a gift from the earth, the sky, the Universe, living beings, and their hard work that brings it to our bodies. 2. May we eat with mindfulness and gratitude so as to be worthy to receive it. 3. May our food nourish our bodies and provide only…
THE LIGHT OF HEALTH GLOWS THROUGH EVERY ASPECT OF MY BEING: August 3, 2109
The infinite light of health glows through every organ and cell of our being. All is well with our minds, bodies and souls. Spirit reveals to me what I know when I need to know it. The knowledge and wisdom of the universe is a wellspring within me, and I access it anytime I need….
I UPLIFT THE WORK OF JUSTICE AND TRANSFORMATION: August 2, 2019
I take the concerns of diversity and inclusion to the altar of faith and I uplift this work of justice and transformation into the universe of endless change, and I see the miracles that must take shape. Miracles “undo the past in the present, and thus releases the future.” Prayers ooze from the cracks of…
