Featured, Sustainable Living

How to Make Decisions That Are Right for You

When you make decisions in your life, you go through a mental dance of toing and froing, trying to weigh up which direction is best for you. But in this process, how can you know which thoughts to listen to? Many people rely on their intuition. Intuition is sometimes called your ‘gut instinct,’ or heart. ...

Emma Lu

Double exposure portrait of a woman meditating outdoors with eyes closed, combined with a photograph of sunrise or sunset.

6 Ways to Have Younger-Looking Skin

Most people wash their faces every day. While there are a number of expensive cosmetic options, the following simple household recipes can also help reduce wrinkles so you will have younger-looking skin for a fraction of the price. 6 ways to have younger-looking skin 1. Rice vinegar Method: Add a small amount of rice vinegar ...

Emma Lu

Young African American woman applying moisturizer on her face while standing in front of the mirror.

Simple Exercises to Nurture Your ‘Second Heart’

In order to live a long and healthy life, it is therefore important to regularly exercise your legs and nurture your ‘Second Heart’. Seventy percent of our blood is pumped back to the heart by the calf. So in the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the lower leg is called the “second heart.” Why? The ...

Raven Montmorency

A broken heart.

Too Much Social Media Puts Kids’ Mental Well-Being at Risk

Children are particularly vulnerable to social media. It wasn’t that long ago that connecting to the Internet required a dial-up modem. Nowadays, it’s easy to access the Internet no matter where you’re at any time using your phone or laptop. But having access 24/7 is not all wonderful, especially for kids. Growing up in this ...

Rory Karsten

Teenage girl sitting on a park bench with her cell phone sending text messages.

Music Is Medicine in Shen Yun Performing Arts

In a Shen Yun production, music is a medicine that nourishes your soul. Shen Yun is a show that brings beautiful ancient Chinese culture back to life through traditional dance and music. It’s an explosion of color and traditional costumes, full of rich stories and legends with extraordinary talent and music. In ancient China, one of music’s earliest purposes ...

Jessica Kneipp

Shen Yun dancers performing on stage.

Study Shows Good Moral Values in Stories Can Positively Affect Teenagers

Parenting books and articles often highlight the importance of teaching our tweens and teens good morals. But what exactly are “moral values”? Why are they important? And what is the best way to teach them? At their most basic level, moral values are the guiding principles that give us a sense of what is right ...

Jack Roberts

Three girls look at fashion magazines together while sitting on the grass in the park.

How a POW Used Chinese Wisdom

This is a true story that happened in a Japanese-run prisoner-of-war (POW) concentration camp during World War II that was located in China. Every day, the Allied POWs had to do 15 hours of hard labor. The quality of the food served to the prisoners was poor and the available amount of food was very ...

David Jirard

American soldiers getting out of a truck at a Japanese prisoner of war camp during World War II.

5 Strategies to Cultivate Hope

Life has unexpected ways of unfolding. Often compared to a roller coaster ride, a person has to go through ups and downs. Even then, rarely does anyone understand what life is all about. With all the suffering going around, life does seem to be going downhill for everyone. But many are holding onto hope. Being ...

Raven Montmorency

Yellow flower growing through a crack in the sidewalk, hope concept.

Why a Giant Violin Is Floating Around the Canals of Venice

Venice is home to not just beautiful canals, but also some really great architecture. The city has always been artistically imaginative with its unparalleled Murano glass and jaw-dropping carnivals. Taking things a step further, a Venetian artist came up with another weirdly beautiful craft. On a September day in 2021, a 40-foot-long giant violin was ...

Raven Montmorency

'Noah's Violin' floating on Venice's Grand Canal carrying musician and surrounded by gondolas.

Sticks and Stones Break Bones, but Negative Words Still Haunt Me

The majority of us may be familiar with the following saying: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” However, negative words embed themselves in young minds. Am I right? Do you resonate?   What does this saying mean for you?  Previous studies have found increased anxiety levels in children associated with ...

Katrina Hicks

Sticks and stones laying together on a white background.