To Be a Loved Horse: Dufresne's Story
"A friend of mine was looking to buy a horse that could be a backyard buddy. She didn't want to spend a lot of money, so I suggested we go to the local monthly horse auction to see if we might rescue one of the horses from a potential death sentence.For those of you who are unfamiliar with horse auctions, many times the meat buyers end up taking the unwanted animals at low prices. There are always... posted on Nov 24 2020, 12,025 reads

Let's Be Well: A Video Game Born From a Child's Grief
Paula Toledo was the mother of a two-year old, and a two-week-old baby when she lost her husband to mental illness and suicide. In the wake of that devastating loss, "I felt the most important thing I could do was to care for myself and my children. And so I did -- albeit, while I laid in the dirt. Instead of clawing my way out, I decided to surrender and play there with my young children. Insulat... posted on Nov 23 2020, 3,854 reads

How to Love a Country
The Cuban American civil engineer turned writer, Richard Blanco, straddles the many ways a sense of place merges with human emotion to make home and belonging -- personal and communal. The most recent -- and very resonant -- question he's asked by way of poetry is: how to love a country? At Chautauqua, Krista Tippett invited him to speak and read from his books. Blanco's wit, thoughtfulness, and e... posted on Nov 22 2020, 4,441 reads

A War Orphan Who Became a Ballerina
Michaela DePrince is "the ballerina who flies." Orphaned at age three in war-torn Sierra Leone, DePrince was malnourished and sick when she and her "mat-mate" at the orphanage were adopted by Elaine and Charles DePrince of New Jersey. Inspired by a photograph of a ballerina in a magazine, DePrince trained as a ballet dancer and is now with the Dance Theater of Harlem. "I think no matter where you ... posted on Nov 21 2020, 2,737 reads

Praying for the Earth
"The earth needs our prayers more that we know. It needs us to acknowledge its sacred nature, that it is not just something to use and dispose. Many of us know the effectiveness of prayers for others, how healing and help is given, even in the most unexpected ways. There are many ways to pray for the earth. It can be helpful first to acknowledge that it is not unfeeling matter but a living being t... posted on Nov 20 2020, 8,025 reads

Larry Korn: One-Straw Messenger
"Larry Korn was a 26-year-old farmhand from the United States living and working at a communal farm in rural Kyoto in 1974 when he decided to go and see for himself an enigmatic farmer-philosopher he had been hearing about through the grapevine in Japan. Korn was met at the rice fields of the Fukuoka Shizen Noen (Fukuoka Natural Farm) by the farm's middle-aged proprietor, Masanobu Fukuoka. It was ... posted on Nov 19 2020, 4,256 reads

Where Wonder Lives: Daily Practices for Cultivating the Sacred
Fabiana Fondevila is a storyteller, activist and teacher from Argentina. Her upcoming book, 'Where Wonder Lives' invites readers on a unique journey through inner landscapes, kindling fresh awareness of life's mysteries. In the following excerpt she delves into humanity's age old search for meaning through two seemingly contradictory, yet deeply complementary paths.... posted on Nov 18 2020, 7,178 reads

Are You a Highly Sensitive Person?
"Dr. Elaine Aron is a clinical depth psychologist and the author of the seminal 1997 book The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You. With Sounds True, she has published The Highly Sensitive Person's Complete Learning Program: Essential Insights and Tools for Navigating Your Work, Relationships, and Life. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with... posted on Nov 17 2020, 9,420 reads

Remembering Our Way Forward
"Perspective has carried me through a year that has been marked by the pandemics of Covid-19 and racism, political strife, and an escalating climate crisis. Ive held close as gently as possible reliable truisms: Change is the only constant. Life tends toward life. I affirm: I'm not alone. In the end, death comes to us all I have only to decide how to live life now. Showing up for myself, for ot... posted on Nov 16 2020, 6,387 reads

The Soul of the Rose
"A bower of roses creates a special kind of sacred space, filled with a scent that can connect us to the past. Whether freshly cut and placed in a crystal vase with winter greens, or tumbling out of an old watering can, dried for a Victorian potpourri or the center of an herb filled tussie mussie, the rose connects us to our inner selves, to memories of another time, another place, as past and pr... posted on Nov 15 2020, 7,813 reads