Sips of Cha

Mind & Inner Life

Explorations of our inner world — psychology, spirituality, mental health, consciousness and healing.

Chopping Wood, Carrying Water

Chop wood, carry water — before and after enlightenment, the work stays the same. Why I replaced new year resolutions with values, and how that changed everything...

The Complexity of Simplicity

Simplicity isn't minimalism — it's the rare ability to reduce complexity without losing what matters. And that takes more maturity than most people realize...

Placebo and Nocebo Effects

Placebo and nocebo are real — your beliefs shape your body in measurable ways. A short reflection on the invisible convictions that quietly run our lives...

Emotional Profile

Are you a mad scientist, judge, cheerleader or poet? A reflection on emotional profiles, intensity as a gift and the cost of flattening who you truly are...

Time Blindness

Time blindness is real — and so is its hidden gift. A short reflection on struggling to feel time passing and the unexpected freedom that comes with living in the now...

Crossing the Valley of Despair

The valley of despair is real — and it has a name. How a 1979 model of change explained exactly where I was, and the tiny experiment I designed to get through it...

How Emotions Are Made: Bridges Between Neuroscience and Spirituality

Emotions aren't reactions — they're constructions. What neuroscience and spirituality reveal about how the brain creates feelings, and why that changes everything...

The Reason to Feel

Being too conscious can sterilize life. A reflection on why love songs, emotional irrationality and art give us permission to feel what the mind tries to control...

How I Started Meditating and 5 Conclusions I’ve Reached about the Practice

From Rivotril at 13 to a daily meditation practice — how Buddhism opened the door and 5 honest conclusions about what meditation really is and isn't...

The simple gesture of looking up

Looking up in the forest — and in life. A reflection on perspective, the weight we carry, and what we miss when we forget to lift our gaze...