Stephanie O’Brien

“Once you've met someone you really never forget them; it just takes a while for your memory to return”
― Hayao Miyazaki, Spirited Away Box Set

“Reading while listening to the sounds of birds and the rush of water. This is the way of life that has come to be idealized.

Don't think of unpleasant things right before bed. A five minute "bed zazen" before going to sleep.

People who do their best to enjoy what is before them have the greatest chance to discover inner peace. Often, whatever it is they are enjoying - the thing before them - has the potential to turn into an opportunity.

Stop dismissing whatever it is that you are doing and start living.

Seek not what you lack. Be content with the here and now.

When you are uncertain, simplicity is the best way to go.

Conscientious living begins with early to bed, early to rise. This is the secret to a life of ease and contentment.

Don't be bound by a single perspective. There is more than just "the proper way".

Possibility springs from confidence.

When someone criticizes us, we immediately feel wounded. When something unpleasant happens, we cannot get it out of our head. What can we do to bounce back? One way to strengthen the mind is though cleaning. When we clean, we use both our head and our body.

Recognize the luxury of not having things.

Desire feeds upon itself and the mind becomes dominated by boundless greed. This is not happiness.

The three poisons are greed, anger and ignorance.

Be grateful for every day, even the most ordinary. The happiness to be found in the unremarkable.

Your mind has the power to decide whether or not you are happy.

There is not just one answer. The meaning behind Zen koans.

When there are things we want to do, we must do them as if our lives depend on it. Time spent out of character is empty time.”
― Shunmyō Masuno, Zen: The Art of Simple Living

“A supple mind accepts change and is not attached to the past. Rather than lament change, it finds new beauty and hope in it.”
― Shunmyō Masuno, Zen: The Art of Simple Living

“If the world is not going the way you want it to, perhaps it is better to change yourself. Then, whatever world you encounter, you can move through it comfortably and with ease.”
― Shunmyō Masuno, The Art of Simple Living: 100 Daily Practices from a Zen Buddhist Monk for a Lifetime of Calm and Joy