Silicon Valley Nonviolent Communication

...is beginning to answer one vexing question: Is compassion a fixed personality trait, locked in by nature and nurture, or can higher states of compassion be cultivated? Scientific studies suggest that we can learn to be compassionate and that compassion can even physically change the wiring of our nervous systems.
http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4856

DailyGood: Be Healthy, Be Compassionate The Dalai Lama has been telling us for years that it would make us happy, but he never said it would make us healthy, too. Maybe the Dalai Lama knew all along or maybe he's just finding out like the rest of us, but science is starting to catch up with a couple millennia of spiritual thought. In rece...

AUTHENTICITY is a daily practice. Living authentically means cultivating the COURAGE to be emotionally honest, to set boundaries, and to allow ourselves to be vulnerable; exercising the COMPASSION that comes from knowing that we are all made of light and darkness, strength and struggle; and nurturing the CONNECTION and sense of belonging that can only happen when we let go of who we are supposed to be and embrace who we are. Authenticity demands WHOLEHEARTED living and loving – even when it’s hard, even when it hurts, and especially when we are wrestling with the shame and fear of “not being enough.” Mindfully practicing authenticity during our most soul-searching struggles is how we invite grace, joy, and gratitude into our lives. — Brené Brown, Ph.D.

I attended the Women's Winter Retreat with NVC Santa Cruz this weekend. A wonderful, heart-opening event. If you haven't looked at their offerings lately you can find them here: http://www.nvcsantacruz.org/

NVC Santa Cruz: Nonviolent Communication in counseling, mediation, conflict resolution, organization Jean Morrison, Christine King, Rick Longinotti, and Kristin Masters share their diversity of experience and interests to offer NVC services, adaptable to your needs.

NVC Santa Cruz Classes - Coming Back to Life: Joanna Macy's Work That Reconnects With Kristin Masters Facing the scale of social and ecological crisis in our world can leave us feeling numb, overwhelmed and powerless. Instead of trying to get away from our pain we can be feel it as evidence of our interconnectedness in the web of life. We will draw on the wisdom o