This morning my mom made an innocent comment that the way my daughter was wearing her hair made her look like Audrey Hepburn. I felt uncomfortable with this, because growing up and to this day I struggle with social comparison, including with celebrities. I still remember learning in my late teens that magazines are photoshopped. … Continue reading A Photoshopped World, A Tormented Soul
Author: Gila Daman
Latest release: Inner Piece: Decluttering a Soul. Also by Gila: Pandemic Poetry, She Pooped, I'm Pooped!: Motherhood Year One, First Comes Self-Love, Then Comes Marriage, and The Roadmap Ends Here: Entering Adulthood.
A Mommy’s Tummy Ache is Different
This morning I had a stomach ache. My body tends to express stress in this way. And the past few weeks have been full of emotions—conscious and repressed ones—so my hurting tummy is no surprise. I had a tummy ache, but not only did I still have to go to work—as I'm used to as … Continue reading A Mommy’s Tummy Ache is Different
A Soul Cannot Be Seen
There is this concept in Judaism that an image of G-d cannot be made. G-d is beyond physical attributes, and when physical descriptions are used in the Bible, they are meant as metaphors to facilitate human understanding. For example, when it says He took the Israelites out of slavery "with an outstretched arm." So too, … Continue reading A Soul Cannot Be Seen
Wisdom Grows with Age, the Ageless Soul
I took a moment during my busy day working at the preschool and thought about how much I have grown. Gave myself credit for the work I have done in being more self-compassionate and less full of self-doubt and judgment. I still have a long way to go, but I have improved over the years. … Continue reading Wisdom Grows with Age, the Ageless Soul
Hello, Blogosphere
Hello, Blogosphere A world I hold close and dearWhere I can openly express my fear, Without people looking at me queer.For if I tell it to a friendPerhaps that relationship would endIf they really knew what was behindMy cheerful face—a weary mind.And when I blog, I am unique, The words spoken are those only I … Continue reading Hello, Blogosphere
Giving Thanks: My Software Gets an Upgrade
I started reading Conscious Discipline by Dr. Becky Bailey today. I have attended a seminar and read some of it, as directed by our preschool director, but this is the first time I am taking on reading the entire book. It is a journey that will help me develop my own executive skills, while helping … Continue reading Giving Thanks: My Software Gets an Upgrade
Georgia State of Mind: The Long Version of How We Got to Atlanta
This morning I woke up at 4 am. Since I went to bed at 8 pm (I am an exhausted mother of a toddler after all!) I felt well-rested. I was also jolted awake in part by a dream I had—an incidence that's been all too often this week. Well this dream wasn't a scary … Continue reading Georgia State of Mind: The Long Version of How We Got to Atlanta
Back to the Basics: the Prayer Book
The Jewish prayer book is called a siddur. I learned the Jewish prayers in religious day school growing up, and recited them religiously (pun intended) through my mid-twenties. Then life started to get more complicated. In grad school I remember the tension I felt about having to rush through my morning prayers to get to … Continue reading Back to the Basics: the Prayer Book
The Secret to Peace of Mind: The Breath
Do you control your breath or does it control you? The answer is: both. Breath is a unique biological function in that it occurs involuntarily, but can be manipulated through conscious effort. As part of my decade-long pursuit of greater peace of mind, I have engaged in mindfulness meditation exercises focusing on the breath. This … Continue reading The Secret to Peace of Mind: The Breath
Taking Accountability for Your Stress
You know how they say people can't drive us crazy if we don't give them the keys? Or how the only thing we can control in life is our response? Well, I've been thinking about this for a long time—more than a decade in fact—and while I understand this on a rational level, it hasn't … Continue reading Taking Accountability for Your Stress
Mindful Nuggets 