MSI Press Blog

  Excerpt from  How to Get Happy and Stay That Way: Practice Techniques for Putting Joy into Your Life ebook: Anazon Kindle paperback:  MSI Press webstore  (code FF25 gives 25% discount) Don't Let Guilt Block Your Happiness It’s odd to think that guilt can get in the way of happiness, but I know it can because it’s happened to me. There have been times I’ve been so happy that tears come to my eyes—and then I realize something else has gotten into my head, too. That something else is guilt—guilt because I’m happy and other people aren’t. There is no way to get around this reality: not everyone is happy. In fact, there are those who say we should never declare ourselves happy while there are people in the world who are suffering. Some individuals—writers, philosophers—proclaim that to be happy in the world as we know it is a sign of insanity. I don’t agree with either of these concepts. To me, we are most apt to go out of our way to help those less fortunate than ourselves when we ar

  Book Excerpt: Nurturing Contentment What makes us happy? I just made a list, and on it, I placed such items as “writing on the beach,” “cooking something interesting,” and “having lunch with Karen.” There are 20 such items—I could certainly come up with more. Plunging a little deeper into my memory, I could add “making love with my husband, Jack” (the last time was in 2010, the year before he died on January 2, 2011.), “vacation in the Keys” (2009), and “camping in upstate New York” (2002). If I think about these things and why they made me happy, I can see that all of them concerned getting in touch with a certain radiance or connection to love, and not just a personal love, although I certainly felt that for my late husband (and still do). I feel love for my friend Karen, and for the beach, cooking, the Keys, and the land in South Kortright, New York, where Jack and I used to camp. (I confess the last few times were in a trailer, not a tent!) But the love I am speaking of goe

Julie Gentile, author of the much-awarded book, 108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas , recently wrote a column, " Tune into Your Bliss Breath ," for Mindful Movements . In it, she reminds us that every bliss breath is an opportunity to pause and notice, to learn about what helps--and what happens when--you relax. Read Julie's column to read understand what she means by bliss breath and how it can help you relax. Indeed, this is a welcome post in these stressful times. Many thanks to Julie for sharing it. About Julie Julie M. Gentile is a full-time working mama, certified and Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher, author of numerous health and wellness articles, and professional editor and writer. She has been practicing yoga and meditation for a decade and leading yoga classes since 2011. Her journalism background and her own wellness journey have shaped her recent work to inspire others to stand up for their self-care. Julie’s book,  108 Yoga an

A sharing  S ., 20 years old, completely inexperienced in spiritual practices and in therapeutic processes, after her first experience expanding a positive emotion.  When I was asked, at the beginning of the process, to revive the most positive experience in my life, the first image that came into my mind was the day on which I had parachuted for the first time. I had been waiting to jump from the tiny plane; my entire body was already outside of it, and I had felt sure of myself—happy, free and limitless. I had felt that it would be much better to be up in the sky than down on the ground. When I took the leap, it was like floating, and my entire body felt fresh and alive. I was particularly excited while hovering over the sea and seeing the green areas all around. I identified the emotion as “Freedom” and located it in my heart. It felt like confidence and also, lightness, as if all my cells were opening up. The shape was a circle; the color, pink; the feeling, lighthearted