“... life is difficult and painful, just by its very nature, not because we're doing it wrong [pp. 17-18].” — Sylvia Boorstein Difficult Copy Share Image
Ultimately ... it's not the stories that determine our choices, but the stories that we continue to choose. — Sylvia Boorstein Choice Copy Share Image
“We don’t get a choice about what hand we are dealt in this life.” — Sylvia Boorstein Choice Copy Share Image
“It is possible to cultivate a mind so spacious that it can be passionate and awake and responsive and involved and care… — Sylvia Boorstein Psychology Copy Share Image
“Some of my most precious moments of insight have been those in which I have seen clearly that gratitude is the only… — Sylvia Boorstein Buddhism Copy Share Image
“I'd say, "But I'm not happy." And she'd say, "Where is it written that you're supposed to be happy all the time?” — Sylvia Boorstein Happiness Copy Share Image
“I would not ask you to do this practice, to undertake this path of liberation from the habits of suffering mind, unless… — Sylvia Boorstein Freedom Copy Share Image
“The next-to-last sentence that the Buddha is reported to have spoken as he was dying, before his final sentence of encouragement to… — Sylvia Boorstein Buddha Copy Share Image
“... the delicacy, the impermanence, the emptiness of mind states. Just like the weather, they blow in and out. Good mood. Bad… — Sylvia Boorstein Bad mood Copy Share Image
If you take a deep breath and look around, 'Look what's happening to me!' can become 'Look what's happening!' And what's happening?… — Sylvia Boorstein Breaths Copy Share Image
I am thankful that thus far today I have not had any unkind thoughts or said any harsh words or done anything… — Sylvia Boorstein Bed Copy Share Image
His response is more than sensible. It reflects his understanding that evens unfold as a refelction of precise karmic order and that… — Sylvia Boorstein Behavior Copy Share Image
“... freedom of choice is possible. Life is going to unfold however it does: pleasant or unpleasant, disappointing or thrilling, expected or… — Sylvia Boorstein Choice Copy Share Image
“Mindfulness meditation doesn't change life. Life remains as fragile and unpredictable as ever. Meditation changes the heart's capacity to accept life as… — Sylvia Boorstein Change life Copy Share Image
My father . . . used to say, 'I need my anger. It obliges me to take action.' I think my father… — Sylvia Boorstein Action Copy Share Image
We are all dangling in mid-process between what already happened (which is just a memory) and what might happen (which is just… — Sylvia Boorstein Awake Copy Share Image
“Right Understanding means feeling terrible, remembering pain is finite, and taking some solace from that remembering. And, when things are pleasant, even… — Sylvia Boorstein Feeling terrible Copy Share Image
“... every single act we do has the potential of causing pain, and every single thing we do has consequences that echo… — Sylvia Boorstein Causing pain Copy Share Image
“... although I knew what issues had been most difficult for me in my life, I may not have known the depth… — Sylvia Boorstein Feelings Copy Share Image
If I want to free myself from endless cycles of struggling with temptation, I need to keep rediscovering that the pain of… — Sylvia Boorstein Alive Copy Share Image
“Here's a practice idea for right now. Choose one of those sets of phrases. ... Plan on taking some time to say… — Sylvia Boorstein Mind and body Copy Share Image
What if someone hurts you with a weapon? Wait. Think it over. You probably feel angry. That's normal. But wasn't it the… — Sylvia Boorstein Add Copy Share Image
The Buddha taught complete honesty, with the extra instruction that everything a person says should be truthful and helpful. — Sylvia Boorstein Being truthful Copy Share Image
Dedication to goodness-dedication in response to an inner moral mandate rather than external restraint-was both the antidote to the pain and the… — Sylvia Boorstein Antidote Copy Share Image
“I love the phrase 'I am not afraid!' Maybe it's the best phrase we can say, other than 'I have everything I… — Sylvia Boorstein Fear Copy Share Image
The Buddha taught that suffering is the extra pain in the mind that happens when we feel an anguished imperative to have… — Sylvia Boorstein Different Copy Share Image
I understood that the teacher was not eing dismissive, that the problem would be addressed. But, without extra upset. A noncombative response,… — Sylvia Boorstein Able Copy Share Image
“May I meet this moment fully. May I meet it as a friend.” — Sylvia Boorstein Friendship Copy Share Image
Suffering is the demand that experience be different from what it is. — Sylvia Boorstein Demand Copy Share Image
The mind is like tofu. It tastes like whatever you marinate it in. — Sylvia Boorstein Mind Copy Share Image
Steadfast benevolence, sustained by the wisdom that anything other than benevolence is painful, protects the mind from all afflictions. — Sylvia Boorstein Affliction Copy Share Image
“Everybody manages one way or another; everyone who is alive and reading this book has managed.” — Sylvia Boorstein Book Copy Share Image
If we can keep at least a bit of the mind clear about temporality, we can mange complicated, even difficult, times with… — Sylvia Boorstein Bits Copy Share Image
“Safely connected to my life, and reassured of my essential goodness, I feel at ease, at home, really in the most sublime… — Sylvia Boorstein Life Copy Share Image
![“... life is difficult and painful, just by its very nature, not because we're doing it wrong [pp. 17-18].” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c2a/sylvia-boorstein-7241_life_life-is-difficult-and-painful-just-by-it_369102.jpg)
![“It is possible to cultivate a mind so spacious that it can be passionate and awake and responsive and involved and care about things, and noty struggle [p. 23]” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/5bc/sylvia-boorstein-7241_psychology_it-is-possible-to-cultivate-a-mind-so-sp_556892.jpg)
![“... the delicacy, the impermanence, the emptiness of mind states. Just like the weather, they blow in and out. Good mood. Bad mood. Tranquil mood. Frazzled mood [p. 105].” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/195/sylvia-boorstein-7241_bad-mood_the-delicacy-the-impermanence-the-emptin_638097.jpg)
![“... freedom of choice is possible. Life is going to unfold however it does: pleasant or unpleasant, disappointing or thrilling, expected or unexpected, all of the above! What a relief it would be to know that whatever wave comes along, we can ride it out with grace [p. 35].” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/340/sylvia-boorstein-7241_choice_freedom-of-choice-is-possible-life-is-go_122468.jpg)
![“Right Understanding means feeling terrible, remembering pain is finite, and taking some solace from that remembering. And, when things are pleasant, even splendidly pleasant, remembering impermanence doesn't diminish the experience--it enhances it [p. 33]” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/adf/sylvia-boorstein-7241_feeling-terrible_right-understanding-means-feeling-terrib_876750.jpg)
![“... every single act we do has the potential of causing pain, and every single thing we do has consequences that echo way beyond what we can imagine. It doesn't mean we shouldn't act. It means we should act carefully. Everything matters [p. 41].” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/5ab/sylvia-boorstein-7241_quote_every-single-act-we-do-has-the-potential_75621.jpg)
![“I love the phrase 'I am not afraid!' Maybe it's the best phrase we can say, other than 'I have everything I need.' Maybe they are the same. [p. 14]” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f28/sylvia-boorstein-7241_fear_i-love-the-phrase-i-am-not-afraid-maybe_356864.jpg)
![“The end of health or of vigor is sad. [p. 149]” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/7da/sylvia-boorstein-7241_health_the-end-of-health-or-of-vigor-is-sad-p-1_1580107.jpg)
![“Safely connected to my life, and reassured of my essential goodness, I feel at ease, at home, really in the most sublime of homes. [p. 58]” quote by Sylvia Boorstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/1a5/sylvia-boorstein-7241_life_safely-connected-to-my-life-and-reassure_2016161.jpg)