Years of authentic Zen Training, Meditation, Yoga, Qi Gong, Ayurveda and even Burmese Kick Boxing, have led Jeff along a unique and challenging path. The experiences and challenges all along the way, beginning at the ripe old age of 15, have shaped and re-shaped, tested, encouraged, humbled, and in turn refined a certain perspective, a certain awareness of life. Importantly - they have encouraged the question “what do we all share in common, that really matters at our deepest core, that is truly truly valuable to us all. In this life, right here, right now.”

Each of these generous and fruitful “paths” - whether Burmese Martial Arts, Zen practice or Qigong, have all pointed to varying degrees, to look to a much deeper level. To get off the drama filled surface, to stop feeding the unhealthy momentum born from superficial and reactive thinking and acting. To slow down our internal world, to pause - and to reconnect with our Original Momentum. The momentum which speaks for what each of us really want in this life. The Momentum that asks us to realise for ourselves that true strength and stability in life does not come from the objects we cling to around us, the body we wear that will surely decline, or the ideas we hold to desperately in our heads. For all these are fundamentally unreliable no? Do they not change and pass?

So what doesn’t. What can we - each of us, truly rely on. What is always there for us? What is this present moment and how we can train to meet it with a full heart of love, a full mind of wisdom and a full belly of strength and stability.

The depths of our hearts, for the vast majority of us, are completely unknown. Our patience, our care, our strength, our love, our wisdom, all sitting there patiently. How unknown and vast “now” is, what is there if we slow down to see. All so available…..

So we slow down.

We learn to apply wise context to life and it’s situations, we stay in touch with our hearts, we learn the vast difference between reacting and instead responding. We free up the Qi’s movement in our body to feed our health and balance, we practice remembering that thinking and thought is not “us”, its not who we are - it is simply like steam coming off a bath. Its just a process that bubbles away. What we pick up and choose to believe out of those thoughts, that’s the real impact, thats what matters, what shapes us.

So these practices, these “ways” of great depth, great value - they help us to restore our balance, strength, and our connection with others, the world seemingly “out there”, and most importantly with ourselves. They remind us of what we ACTUALLY care about when it really comes down to it. They encourage us to stay right there, and to live fully and brightly, in whatever way is true for you. Or do we want to be full of regret when our time is up?

Re-contacting what really matters in the depths of our heart for each of us is the goal. Then living freely with the strength thats given to us by knowing clearly what is valuable is the path we follow.

Jeff’s hope is that we all remember this place in ourselves.