Author Archive: Mary Layton
Mary Layton has practiced T'ai Chi for 35 years and co-founded T'ai Chi Ch'uan Academy of Modesto in1995. She and her partner have taught hundreds of students. Mary travels frequently to learn from her teacher Grand Master Kai Ying Tung. Interested in every aspect of health Mary likes to follow a natural path. She loves writing, painting, gardening, hiking and playing piano.
ZenView: Simplicity
ZenView: Simplicity From a Zen point of view, simplicity is an important aspect on the road to peace and serenity. The idea is that the simpler your surroundings, the simpler and calmer your mind will be. If you are a serious Zen Buddhist you will shave your head, regardless whether you are male or female. […]
ZenView – Year of the Rooster
ZenView By Mary Layton Happy New Year of the Yin Fire Rooster 2017! According to the lunar Chinese calendar the New Year began on January 28th. The internet has all kinds of amusing but also interesting comments about what this Rooster year will be all about. So I learned, while the last year was the […]
ZenView – Resilience
ZenView By Mary Layton Are we resilient? A person who is resilient has the ability to learn from difficult or unpleasant experiences and is capable to move on with confidence. Successful coping is key. Life does not always happen the way we hoped it would. When adversity hits, or when things develop contrary to our […]
ZenView: Celebrating the Good Old Days (Part 2)
ZenView: Celebrating the Good Old Days (Part 2) Continuing from last month’s article: The first time Dania Hall was mentioned in the “Modesto Evening News” was in 1924 when the Danish Society dedicated the building to the city’s inhabitants. From that point on, Dania Hall was rented for meetings, theatre productions as well as […]
ZenView: Celebrating the Good Old Days
Celebrating the Good Old Days (Part 1) by Mary Layton I like to introduce you to a place in Modesto that I have grown to love very […]
ZenView – Motivation
ZenView Mary Layton “Motivation is energy”, a friend told me once. She explained to me what compelled her to go to her exercise class even though she was feeling very lazy. It was a simple thought, a voice that said ” I’m going to feel much better. I need to move and I want to […]
ZenView – Loss & Transformation
ZenView By Mary Layton Loss and Transformation Last month I travelled to Germany to visit my parents. At the end of April my mother celebrated her 89th birthday with family and her close friends. By that point she had battled Parkinsons for 14 years. Each new year was proof of her strength and courage. My […]
ZenView – Generosity
GENEROSITY By Mary Layton What makes a person generous? Is it because he or she readily shares his or her material assets with others? Gives lavish gifts? Spoils the family and the pets? Donates to charities? Does generosity pertain mostly to the giving of material things? There is more to generosity than meets the eye. […]
ZenView – Serenity
ZenView Mary Layton Step into Serenity What is serenity? The Oxford Dictionary offers this definition: “The state of being calm, peaceful and untroubled, ‘an oasis of serenity amidst the bustling city’.” The goal of meditation is to reach a state of serenity that is when your mind is still and calm. Most of us are […]
ZenView – Are You Blooming
ZenView By Mary Layton Are You Blooming Once again spring is here. I am telling everyone who does not live here how lovely our valley of blooming orchards is. Are you blooming too? Budding out with new ideas? Feeling the chi? Ready to take on the year with new vigor? Branching out? The force of […]
ZenView – Year of the Monkey
ZenView By Mary Layton Chinese New Year On February 8th is the beginning of the Chinese New Year. 2016 is the Year of the Monkey! The monkey is an important character in Chinese culture. The famous book “The Monkey King” is proof of that. That monkey is just unstoppable in the pursuit of his goals. […]
ZenView – Health and Wealth
ZenView By Mary Layton Health and Wealth For those of those you haven’t noticed yet, Modesto’s city slogan “Water Wealth Contentment Health” has found a second place to shine in form of a welcoming inscription on one of the pillars supporting the new Pelandale overpass. Seeing this again, I was reminded once more of what […]
ZenView – Celebration
Zen View by Mary Layton The holiday season is here again and everyone is extra busy with shopping, cooking, cleaning and projects around the house. Finally we can set aside time for close, as well as distant, family members, friends and colleagues and have a good time. Whether you are surrounded by many or only […]
ZenView – Planting A Seed
ZenView By Mary Layton Planting a Seed If it wasn’t for farmers planting seeds we wouldn’t have all the beautiful almond and walnut orchards we enjoy today. And the fruits of their labor are shipped around the world. It is a big part of California’s economy, supplying jobs, livelihoods for thousands of families, these seeds […]
ZenView – Silence
ZenView Mary Layton Enjoy the Silence The first time I experienced silence consciously was when I was 12 years old. I was walking through a beautiful forest with my 16 years old brother. It made me feel special that he chose to take me on a walk with him. I was talking excitedly thinking that […]
