Ric Elias was in the plane that crashed in the Hudson river. He shares with us the thoughts that went through his head while his plane was coming down. A fabulous video that inspires and challenges us.

Related: What Is Truly Important?

A saint was visiting a river to take bath when he ran into a group of family members shouting in anger at each other. After they left the area he turned to his disciples and asked, “Why do people in anger shout at each other?”

His disciples thought for a while then one of them said, “Because we lose our calm, we shout.”

“But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner?” asked the saint.

Disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the other disciples.

Finally the saint explained, “When two people are angry at each other, the distance between their heart grows This happens because they are now expressing themselves through their ego. The ego has been hurt and they want to retaliate back and return the hurt. With all these hurt feelings, the hearts have moved apart and to cover the increased distance they must now shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other to cover the increasingly growing distance between their hearts.”

“What happens when two people fall in love? They don’t shout at each other but talk softly or whisper. Their egos are out of the way and this allows their hearts to come very close and love to bloom. The distance between them is either nonexistent or very small. When they love each other even more, what happens? There is no need even to whisper, mere looks suffice.”

The saint continued, “So when you argue be careful. Are you arguing from the ego? You will know it if you find yourself speaking loudly and have hurt feelings inside. If you allow that to happen often you will let your hearts grow distant. Soon a day will come when the distance is so great that you may not find the path to return. It helps to remember that the word anger is just one letter short of the word danger. It is not that anger is an inappropriate emotion. It is only when it is expressed through the ego in a loud and inappropriate way with an intention to hurt the other person, does it become dangerous and counterproductive.”

Related: A Gift Not Accepted

Fifteen years ago my life looked very different than it does today. I was a young mother of two beautiful boys, one six months, the other three years old. I had retired from my career as a corporate meeting planner and, like many other young moms, wondered what the next chapter of my life would look like. On August 16, 1996, the direction of my new life began to take form. It was on that day that my dad, at the age of 56, took his own life. My father’s suicide was and continues to be THE defining moment in my life; from that day forward, I have thought of my life as before and after that event.

As I approach the 15th anniversary of my dad’s death, it feels like a perfect time to share my story and how the beautiful and ancient practice of yoga has changed my life. As a result of many of those changes, I have been given the opportunity to share yoga with others as a healing tool in navigating the long and arduous journey through loss.

Today, I am a licensed social worker, a registered yoga teacher (RYT) through the Yoga Alliance, as well as a member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT). I have been a volunteer with the Catholic Charities Program Loving Outreach for Survivors of Suicide (LOSS) since 1999 and an active community volunteer and speaker for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). I work as an advocate for grieving children, families, and communities through my work with Willow House, and was instrumental in creating a program specifically for families with children grieving the death of a parent or sibling by suicide. At the inception of this program at Willow House in 2004, there were no other services or programs available in the Chicago area for this specific population. So while I would never say that my father’s death in its raw and most painful form was a “gift,” I do believe that from that experience of that particular “box full of darkness,” to quote Mary Oliver, I have and continue to receive gifts of beauty and hope daily. Continue reading →