On Generosity
"Twice this week I was rendered speechless by the power of unexpected generosity. The first was an actual gift from someone I barely knew, and the second was a story of survival that took such courage to write that I experienced it as a gift. The gift was brought by one of my students, from her mother who I only met once. It was her mother's way of saying thank you to me for loving her daughter so... posted on Feb 02 2022, 4,072 reads

Tracking Wonder
"In a world obsessed with work and productivity, many people feel broken by distraction, disengagement, and a default reactivity to life's surprises, but can rediscover their innate genius to lead a more creative life rooted in the present. In the new book 'Tracking Wonder', Jeffrey Davis an acclaimed teacher, consultant and speaker presents a science-based, soul-centered, counter-approach to hy... posted on Feb 01 2022, 3,006 reads

Time Management for Mortals
"Journalist Oliver Burkeman has made a delightful and important philosophical, spiritual, and practical investigation of all that is truly at stake in what we blithely refer to as 'time management.' At this time of year, many of us are making plans and resolutions -- treating time as part bully, part resource -- something we could fit everything we want into if only we had the discipline. This con... posted on Jan 31 2022, 5,296 reads

Retriever of Souls
"At night, only at night, her mind grows timber-thickso dense and brambled, there's no way to find her, let alone bring her back to bed. Gone, then, is the tumbleweed-haired, half-feral kid who rode her goat every morning to the preschool up the hill. The kid who by fourth grade volunteered at the local vet clinic, where she sat with the grieving, while their pets died. More than once, I've been a... posted on Jan 30 2022, 5,346 reads

Being Simply Beautiful
We are surrounded by the stuff that we think is so valuable and important, but take it all away and what is left? The real you is left. Or at least the journey to the real you without all the stuff that you think defines you. In this video, Theo Du Plessis of South Africa, had a "Damascus moment" that opened him up to the only question he asks himself now before acquiring possessions or pursuing e... posted on Jan 29 2022, 3,301 reads

His Back Pocket & Other Poems
Mick Cochrane is a professor of English and a longtime teller of stories. His published works include novels, short stories, essays, and poetry. His work is compelling, candid, and cuts straight to the heart of what it means to be human, what it means to experience love, loss, limitation, and transcendence. Here is a selection of three of his poems.... posted on Jan 27 2022, 5,029 reads

What is Holding it Together?
"Words are delicious, but cannot say much. They often lose the water of meaning before it is delivered. But they can be stirred to form descriptions of the breath, glances, gestures, and pulses between lives. Perhaps writing is finding a scrape in the skin of knowing, where the sting and dirt and blood of the day is let out, and music is let in." The following excerpt, by Nora Bateson, noted resea... posted on Jan 26 2022, 2,945 reads

bell hooks: A Revolutionary Who Led With Love
"I have known radicals and revolutionaries who love 'the people' but whose everyday lives are replete with contradictions. The late bell hooks was by no means perfect, but she was impressively consistent. She took seriously the notion that a revolution had to center love and was as much about transforming ourselves as it was about transforming the world. I met hooks when I was a graduate student a... posted on Jan 25 2022, 4,168 reads

On Death and Love
"I met Death in my early twenties. I had already lost loved ones before this time. A friend at school was taken by leukemia in a breathtaking six weeks one strange, hot summer. My grandfather, Eric, and my uncle, Tim, both died before their time. But none of us truly meets Death until we are ready to understand what it means. My first meeting came while sitting in a recording studio with a Holocau... posted on Jan 24 2022, 4,828 reads

Prayer for the Earth: An Indigenous Response to these Times
In his lifetime Stan Rushworth, an elder of Cherokee descent who was raised by his grandfather, has seen a river die, animals disappear, and the proliferation of box stores. The devastation of climate change is not new to him - his elders have been telling him about it all of his life. The traditional indigenous wisdom that is needed now is looking at how indigenous populations have managed to sur... posted on Jan 23 2022, 3,060 reads