Welcome to the Under The Tenderness Tree blog, which we will add to frequently. We invite you to visit us often to read our blogs and hopefully comment. Topics will cover a wide range of appropriate subjects and themes. We will also offer guest blogs.
Welcome to the Under The Tenderness Tree blog, which we will add to frequently. We invite you to visit us often to read our blogs and hopefully comment. Topics will cover a wide range of appropriate subjects and themes. We will also offer guest blogs.
Why I Call My Blog ‘Under the Tenderness Tree’
Siddhartha, the young Prince who was to become the Buddha, renounced worldly pleasures and left the comforts of his home in search of true happiness. For six years he practiced asceticism to the point of starvation. Near death, he came down from the mountain top and sat under a big sturdy tree. A woman saw him and offered him a bowl of rice. Feeling stronger, he bathed in a nearby river and then sat in quiet meditation, grateful for the tree’s protective shade. Soon after, in community with the entire forest of trees and animals, he attained his enlightenment.
The nurturing provided by the tree had a great deal to do with Buddha’s awakening. Under the Bodhi Tree he was no longer alone engaged in self punishing practices, but open to the quiet support that the tree bestowed. His breath and the tree’s breath became one and it was relaxing and peaceful. Bliss followed.
We hope you enjoy some of the blog articles here and experience support and guidance for your own moments of awakening We especially encourage you to always be on the look-out for your personal tenderness experiences where you can stop, breathe deeply, take notice of what is around you at that moment, and feel enlightened.
A Synchronicity of Words: Many Ways to Say What We All Need
/in Under The Tenderness Tree /by FaithTsewa, the Buddhist concept of warm-hearted tenderness, shines a powerful light on the way forward toward greater human connection and overall well-being. By Faith Bethelard, Psy.D. (From Faith’s article on ThriveGlobal.com) If you believe in synchronicity, as I do, and love to read, then you may have had this same experience as I did: the […]
How Our Tenderness IQ Can Help Us Cope With Stress
/in Under The Tenderness Tree /by FaithBy Faith Bethelard, Psy.D. D.S.S., Clinical Psychologist (From Faith’s article on thriveglobal.com) The time is more than right, right now, for us to define, examine and put into play a new type of intelligence that I call a Tenderness IQ—TQ for short. TQ, for me, is a combination of emotional intelligence and moral character. Specifically, […]
The Kind of Hunger People Don’t Talk About
/in Under The Tenderness Tree /by FaithDuring this time of isolation, small moments of tenderness can help us feel more connected than ever. By Faith Bethelard, Psy.D. D.S.S., Clinical Psychologist (From Faith’s article on thriveglobal.com) During the quarantine, I’ve noticed a lot of recipes being shared on social media. It makes sense: people are home with extra time to cook. Home-cooked […]
Taking Our True Temperature: Is Tenderness Rising?
/0 Comments/in Under The Tenderness Tree /by FaithLast summer, the summer of 2019, which seems so long ago now, I was telling a friend about writing a new book, and that it would be on tenderness. My intention, I explained, was to do a shorter and “friendlier” version of my previous co-authored book, Cherishment: A Psychology of the Heart. In the new […]
How Developing a ‘Tenderness Consciousness’ Can Change Your Life.
/2 Comments/in Under The Tenderness Tree /by FaithIt’s April, 2020. Spring Equinox has passed. I am in Southeastern Pennsylvania, where Spring has sprung early. On a leisurely walk with my friend yesterday I was rewarded with a magnificent feast for the senses: daffodils, forsythia and magnolia blossoms preening happily, showing off their beauty and strength. Though I live in New York City […]