Posts by Carl Greer
Resolve Conflicts Using the Martial Arts Wisdom of Kime and Ma
We all experience conflicts, and two principles from the martial arts, kime and ma, can help us resolve them and avoid feeling that life is an exhausting battle. Conflict doesn’t have to define our relationships with other people who are difficult, contentious, or determined to conquer or dominate us. Life is too short to let tense situations and…
Read MoreThe Poem of Your Life
In ancient times, aging poets in Japan would craft a death poem in acknowledgment that their time on earth was coming to an end and as a reflection on the life they had lived. There’s a story that when the Japanese poet Matsuo Basho was getting on in years, he was asked if he had…
Read MorePractice the Art of Listening Well
In working as an analyst and as a clinical psychologist, I’ve learned that it’s best to listen, listen, listen, and then listen some more before responding. This course of action is especially wise whenever the person I am working with is upset. When it comes to conflict resolution strategies, at the top of the list is…
Read MoreTreating a Spiritual Illness
Whatever your state of health and well-being, however hard you strive for greater wellness, you might not realize that you’re neglecting your spiritual well-being. You may need to treat a spiritual illness. Not long ago, I received a strong message in a dream: Death can be a spiritual illness. I understood that what my unconscious…
Read MoreConnecting to Spirit in Nature
Where can one find opportunities to learn more about the mystical? It’s difficult, but not impossible, to have what you need show up for When I was not yet old enough for kindergarten, I would often leave behind my baby brother, who was still in cloth diapers and in need of my mother’s watchful eye, and wander off by myself to explore the town and countryside near my home in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Neither of my parents realized that my sense of adventure bordered on the foolhardy.
Read MoreTap into Transformative Power
To be practical and win others’ approval, many people put aside their dreams and set new priorities that are out of synch with their authentic selves. In midlife or during crises such as experiencing health problems or losses (jobs, loved ones, marriages, and so on), we often will awaken to how much we have constricted…
Read MoreYour New Story of Happiness Starts Today
“I really should call my old friend.” “I forgot how much I enjoyed this!” “What took me so long to get around to doing this when I love it so much?” It’s easy to forget to schedule activities you enjoy. When that’s a habit, you might never get around to doing what you love. If…
Read MoreListening to the Call of the Jaguar
Each of us has a life about which a story can be told. When coming up with the title for my memoir, I settled on The Necktie and The Jaguar because the contrast between the two images reflected the arc of my story: It began in the Midwest in the postwar era, continued through my…
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