“To ignore the power of paradigms to influence your judgment is to put yourself at risk when exploring the future. To be able to shape your future, you have to be ready and able to change your paradigm.” ~Joel Arthur Barker I’ve recently become a fan of James Arthur Ray and have been working through [...]

My grandmother was born in 1890, long before the invention of “proper” medications. In spite of the fact that she didn’t have sophisticated medical treatment during some of the most crucial years of her life, she still managed to overcome gangrene as a child, survive meningitis at 97 and live to the ripe age of [...]

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you.” ~Unknown Forgiveness is something I have to work on every day. It’s very hard to forgive. It’s almost as if I think that if I truly forgive, I am somehow saying whatever injustice I have been dealt was okay. But forgiveness [...]

“If you look to others for fulfillment, you will never be truly fulfilled.” ~Lao Tzu There are four aspects of a fulfilling relationship – intellectual, physical, emotional and spiritual. It is said that, in order to have a truly fulfilling relationship, your partner needs to be able to meet your needs in these four areas. [...]

“Want is a growing giant whom the coat of have was never large enough to cover…” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson Recently, I have been thinking and talking a lot about gratitude. It seems that so many of us want more than what we have. It’s not that we aren’t happy with what we already have in [...]

About a year ago, I realized that I had lost myself somewhere along the course of my life. This was a very disturbing realization, as I had always looked at myself as a rather “together” sort of person. But I woke up one morning and realized that my trouble marriage wasn’t really getting any better [...]

Hello! My name is Mari Peckham aka The Goddess Mari in the world of belly dance. I’m a professional belly dance performer and instructor in the Chicago area. I also have been a creative movement teacher for young children since 2001. I feel fortunate that I love my work, so “job” isn’t really a bad [...]