The Blog

THE SEVENTH CLEARING The Mirror of True Intentions The Still Pool The seventh day's journey was the easiest of all. The path was clear. The light was gentle. Badger, Fox, and Mouse moved through the forest with a lightness they hadn't felt at the beginning — as if the six clearings behind them had quietly removed something they hadn't known they were carrying. As evening approached, the seventh clearing appeared. It was not the largest. Not the most elaborate. But there

The Sixth Clearing The Oasis of Patience The sixth day brought strange terrain. The familiar forest thinned. The path became rocky and spare. Badger, Fox, and Mouse moved slowly, carefully, saying little. When the sixth clearing appeared, it was modest -- a single old oak, a small trickle of spring water. Enough, but barely. The Tortoise was already there. "The small spring," she said simply. "It teaches through scarcity." They settled. The fire was small. Two night

The Fifth Clearing The Oasis of Humility The fifth day was the hardest yet. The path grew steep, the undergrowth thick, and for a time Badger, Mouse and Fox wondered if the clearing ahead existed at all. But the old Tortoise had said it would appear. And it did -- the most beautiful yet. A wide pool, fruit hanging from old branches, soft moss underfoot. They ate. They drank. They breathed. Then the Tortoise settled by the water and began."Tonight, a story about a Badg

The Fourth Clearing The Oasis of Wisdom The fourth day was gentler. The path clearer, the air softer. Badger, Fox, Mouse, and Tortoise arrived at the fourth clearing before the light had faded -- a wide pool surrounded by wildflowers growing from ancient mossy stones. The Tortoise said this clearing had been here longer than any creature could remember. After a quiet evening meal, Tortoise began. "Tonight, a story about a Fox." Fox looked up, surprised. "Not you,"

The Third Clearing The Oasis of Compassion The third day's journey brought a storm. Wind bent the trees, rain scoured the path, and the three companions huddled beneath an old oak until it passed. When the forest quieted, they found themselves at a deeper clearing -- a hidden pool between two mossy rocks, the water sweet and still. They drank. They breathed. The old Tortoise was already there, waiting. "Tonight," she said, "a story about a Wren." There was once

The Second Clearing The Oasis of Friendship The second day's journey was harder than the first. The path was steep, the sun relentless, the roots more tangled. By evening, Badger, Fox, and Mouse arrived at a deeper clearing -- a wide pool surrounded by ancient willows, the water cool and still. They drank. They rested. The fireflies returned. And from the shadows came the old Tortoise again, settling quietly at the water's edge. "Tonight," she said, without preamble,

Volume 5 is a Special Edition of our Forest Fables, a Forest Epic on a smalll scale to match our small Forest Friends. It is being released in seven parts, thus easier for readers to walk the jouney along side of our Forest Friends. Badger, Fox, and Mouse follow the old Tortoise deeper into the Fable Forest, where seven clearings wait like lanterns along a path. In each clearing, Tortoise tends a small fire and tells a teaching story—one that reveals the impulse beneath an ac

Chapter 1 Mouse and the Word-Stone (The Truth Beside the Truth) One morning, Mouse found a small stone at the edge of the Stone Pool. It was warm in his paws and faintly glowing, as if it held a sleeping firefly. A single word shimmered on its surface. Mouse squinted. “Brave,” he whispered. But when he tried to say it aloud, the word slipped into “breathe.” He tried again. “Breathe,” he said — and it almost became “brave.” Mouse’s whiskers drooped. “My tongue is tangled.” Bad

Chapter 1 Badger’s Companions (Choosing Presence Over Busyness) Badger found himself surrounded by invitations — Weasel wanted help gathering berries, Deer asked for company on a long walk, and Songbird hoped he’d listen to a new melody. Badger felt torn, wanting to be everywhere at once. He sat at the stone path, paws folded, and breathed. Slowly, he realized that choosing one thing fully was better than scattering himself thinly across many. He chose to walk with Deer, prom

Chapter 1 The Sparrow Who Counted Raindrops (Patience & Small Truths) Sparrow loved storms. She loved the sound, the smell, the sudden hush afterward. One day she tried to count the raindrops as they fell. She lost track almost immediately. Badger watched her from the doorway. “You can’t count a storm,” he said. “I know,” Sparrow replied, “but I can count the drops that land on this leaf.” Badger nodded. “Small truths are still truths.” --- Noticing Practice • Notice one sma

Chapter 1 The Gift of the Cold Stream (Awakening & Stillness) Long ago, before his burrow was filled with tea and books, Badger was a restless soul. He spent his days digging, always looking for the next meal or a deeper hole, never looking at the world around him. One afternoon, while stopping to drink in a stream, his paw brushed against a stone that felt different. It was perfectly round and surprisingly cold. When he picked it up, the chill traveled straight to his heart

Every Friday, a small bundle of teaching stories arrives here at the Noticing Stone — five short fables, each carrying a motif, a moment of stillness, and a way of seeing the world a little more clearly. These aren’t "fractured fairy tales" or playful twists on old folklore.They’re something quieter. Something meant to be held. Each fable comes from the Noticing Stone Forest, where the animals learn to pause, to listen, and to notice what they once rushed past. The stories ar

In our last post, we stood at the edge of the woods and heard the distant clanking of the Critical Parent’s armor. Today, the curtain rises. This is the "Epic Opus" of the Noticing Stone. It is a story about a Prince who has forgotten his power, a Critic who has grown too large, and a simple pebble that changes everything. Whether you feel like a Sovereign today or just trying to find your way, this play is for you. Read it through. Find yourself in the characters. THE SOVER

Why the Prince Needs a Stone (And You Do, Too) Most of us live in a Kingdom of Noise. If you sit quietly for just a moment, you’ll hear the "High Chamberlain" of your mind—the Critical Parent Voice —starting his daily rounds. He’s the one who tells you that you’re behind schedule, that your house is a mess, or that you aren't "doing mindfulness" correctly. It’s exhausting to be shouted at by your own mind. The Myth of the Mind Over the next few weeks, I am inviting you into a

​There was once a weaver in the city of Konya who was known for fabrics of such light and strength they seemed woven of moonbeams. A young seeker, tired of wandering from Master to Master, came to him and asked, "How can I find the path to the Truth? I have studied the stars, the scriptures, and the silence, yet I am still divided." ​The weaver did not look up. He was focused on a single golden thread passing through the loom. "Look at this thread," the weaver said. "If it de

Greetings. Thanks for visiting The Noticing Stone and taking the time to remember to be present in the moment. Here’s a story about a man who forgot. The Man Who Slept Through Thursday. There once was a man named Ralph who lived for Fridays. Each Monday, he tightened his tie like a noose and whispered, “Just four more days.” Tuesday passed in spreadsheets. Wednesday vanished in meetings. By Thursday, he was a ghost in his own life. One morning, Ralph awoke to find Thursday mi

Welcome, friend. If you’ve arrived here weary, distracted, or simply curious, this space is for you. The Noticing Stone is not a place of answers, but of invitations. Today, I offer you a story. One that might land softly in your chest, or stir something long asleep in your wings. --- Once, in a grove where the wind whispered secrets to the leaves, there lived a bird who had forgotten it could fly. It wasn’t born flightless. In its youth, it soared with others, tracing spiral

Welcome. Take a breath with me. Imagine stepping into a small theater — the kind with velvet curtains, rows of empty seats, a stage lit softly. This is the theater of your mind. Scenes play out here all the time. Some are joyful, some troubling, some just scraps of memory or imagination. Actors arrive uninvited. Scripts unfold without rehearsal. Often it feels like the play is running itself, while we sit in the audience, carried along. But there is another role we can ta

​Hi, Liam. Today let’s take a look at the Quiet Power of another superhero. In the bustling, boisterous world of superheroes, where capes...

Welcome. Whether you’re arriving with a full heart or a scattered mind, this space is here for you. The Noticing Stone doesn’t ask you to...