solara silver

W e need more  leaders  who are: - self-aware - compassionate - have emotional intelligence - have intellectual intelligence - have spiritual intelligence - are service (other) oriented At this time in our collective history, we simply need more intelligent and respectful leaders who can unite human beings and communities through creative collaboration(s) and God-given benevolence and goodwill.  How can we nurture our current public leaders? And equally important,  how can we start or continue to nurture these same qualities in ourselves ?  By Mayra Porrata | comments: mayra@solarapublishing.com ©2026 Solara Publishing, LLC

Anyone who has fallen or been kicked off the mainstream economy knows this to be true: no one is economically independent. Most, if not all of us, are interdependent and rely on others throughout our entire lifespans. Here’s a basic summary of how most of us are funded at this moment in time:   If you have a regular job, you’re funded by your employer-- who is solely dependent on customers, consumers, markets, social, and environmental conditions.  If you’re self-employed you’re funded by customers or clients. If you work for the government, you’re funded by taxpayers and corporations. If you’re unable to work, you’re funded by both the excess of economic activities (economic safety nets) and by your community --- kind people, caregivers, etc. If you’re married, you’re partially or fully funded by your spouse (note: you can also work a regular job and be self-employed but based on law, marriage binds partners economically). If you're a minor, you're funded by your ...

Women become wise slowly. It begins when we pause to look plainly at all the ways life went wrong, or sideways, or simply stopped being kind. But more importantly, all the ways it lifted, tenderized, and directed our own course. We grow wise from the inside: through the thousand and one betrayals that forced our adaptation and disillusionment; from the courage to walk away from partnerships built on false foundations; from the patience of allowing the same tender lessons of life to touch those who betrayed our hearts—and that includes ourselves.    There’s a powerful prayer I learned in graduate school—the Gestalt prayer (see Fritz Perls) which goes like this: "I do my thing and you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, And you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you, and I am I, and if by chance we find each other, it's beautiful. If not, it can't be helped." The medicine of life is there for all of us. ...

As an Aquarian woman, it took me a long time to understand that my deep humanitarian sensitivities and emotional intelligence are not the same thing. From my experience, emotional intelligence (emotional availability) is an activation that enables us to sense or perceive beyond the confines of our mind. This sensory enhancement provides a new language that leads to a broader and deeper knowing, and therefore an expanded intelligence in us.  What some call ‘woke’, commonly used as an insult or derogatory slur, is nothing more than a God-given power and grace that’s available to us all. This activation can occur anytime we’re open to it. For me it was introduced in small doses via friends, colleagues, and family, and then fully received as a heavenly zip-file sometime after my daughter died. Needless to say, this has been a profound process and ongoing deepening of my own humanity --  a revelatory process that has become my new normal and way of life. If you’re not...

Culture tells men that pain, fear, and anger can only be tempered through control and power-over tactics.  And so they learn to externalize and weaponize their confusion to prove and protect their masculinity.  Se lf-awareness and honoring grief are radical forms of love for brave and wise men. This is one of the most powerful and valuable lessons my dad taught me.    By Mayra Porrata | comments: mayra@solarapublishing.com  ©2026 Solara Publishing, LLC

The desire to understand how you think, what you know, and how you know you know , is a simple way to describe metacognition. Another way to say is this: “the awareness of your own thought processes, including its evaluation.” Relative to culture, the simplest application of metacognition is to ask yourself: “how’s that working out for you?” This kind of question ushers us into a tender investigation of our beautiful selves as the living, fluid, and creative forms we each are. As a former educator, project manager, and life-long student, I’ve always valued the process of self-inquiry, dot-connecting, and evaluating outcomes. That’s why for anyone who's analytical in nature or enjoys using their mind to solve puzzles, I encourage the use of journals and contemplations on gratitude and self-awareness.  But...there are other ways to know that don't require any analysis; only your presence, awareness and love.   Recommended journals: Grateful – 30-day self-care journal ...

Though this was not always true for me, humor has become an important strategy and go-to for life and work.   Last year, while I was heavily steeped in caregiving for my mom, our cat, Miyu Tiramisu, decided she was going to care for me.  Her sudden affection, attention, and daily purrrsistence was so sweet. I often told her she was a human-whisperer and a zen cat.    When my girls were little we had a cat, Mila. She was a fierce tortie and very much their guardian and protector. She was also a therapy cat and broke up arguments between the girls with a swift 'skippity-pap' (lol) to the main instigator.  I have no doubt our pets are old souls and living angels.  Miyu's tenderness and insistence helped me through an overwhelming life chapter, so much so that she inspired 3 tender books.        Influencer  Miyuisms  Paws & Prayers  By Mayra Porrata | comments: mayra@solarapublishing.com ©2026 Solara Publishing, LLC