If you’re feeling overwhelmed—and I mean who isn’t right now—then let’s try a simple qigong exercise together.

Can we talk about the word “spirituality”? Because I kind of hate it.

For those who don’t know, Smiling from the Heart—sometimes called the Inner Smile—is a foundational technique in many qigong schools, including mine. It’s a way to relax the nervous system, clear the mind, and get the qi and blood flowing before we even do any physical qigong exercises.

Here's what I can tell you honestly after over a decade of teaching online and also a decade of teaching in person: the results in students—if you compare the results of purely offline students to purely online students—are equal.

There's a strange kind of grief that comes when your Zen teacher turns out to be a narcissistic asshole.

No one ever taught you how to work with your nervous system instead of constantly pushing against it. So when you fail to stick to something—even something you genuinely want—you blame yourself.

Even respected teachers wander off the path. I learned that the hard way in 2014 when I left my own teacher after 17 years. And I was reminded of it again recently while watching a well-known qigong teacher lecture about enlightenment.

Real hope doesn’t mean reviving vaccine myths or seeing autism as something to eliminate. It means building a world where neurodivergent people are valued, supported, and free to be themselves.