Toni Morrison: On Borders and Belonging
"What does home mean and where do we anchor our belonging in a world of violent alienation and alienating violence? I use "alien" here both in the proper etymological sense rooted in the Latin alienus, "belonging to another," and in the astrophysical sense of "from another planet," "not human," for the combined effect of a dehumanizing assault on belonging for those treated and mistreated as alien... posted on Aug 07 2019, 7,684 reads

Jane Baker: An Artist Who Gives It All Away
One day, San Francisco artist Jane Baker realized something. Now she operates from a new place -- new, but also very old: "I don't know art history that well, but it is only in the last few hundred years that art has been a commodity. Before that, most artists were doing it out of their love for, frankly, for God or their church. Most of the art that's been made has not been made for money. So I'm... posted on Aug 06 2019, 2,173 reads

Working for Peace in a Violent World
"The work of Joseph Campbell and countless others makes it clear that the destructive aspects of the world, and the knowledge that each of us will die, has forever been a deep challenge to reconcile with a celebration of life. It's not getting easier. There's a web of relationships in a globalized world that make it difficult to live without being destructive. Even when sincerely striving to be pe... posted on Aug 05 2019, 6,691 reads

Gratefulness Embraces Parkinson's
"I was diagnosed with Parkinson's just over three years ago when I was 50. Receiving the diagnosis from a matter-of-fact doctor was a traumatizing experience, and I felt that my life and my family's identity had collapsed. Life was difficult and still is difficult, yet something amazing is beginning to happen. I have slowly started to shift my attitude from the anger, fear, and loneliness brought ... posted on Aug 04 2019, 6,808 reads

Petra Wolf: Many Rivers Flowing
An early sense of abandonment, a missing gravestone, and an inheritance promised to her in a dream, were all part of the unusual chain of events that led Petra Wolf, a hairdresser-turned-environmental engineer, to the Camino de Santiago, and to Michael--the man she would one day marry. Over 15 years they followed an inner call and embraced the unknown together, walking to Jerusalem, sailing to Ind... posted on Aug 03 2019, 5,922 reads

Cherishing Our Connections
"We all belong to the world in concentric circles of relationship some more distant and others close, some with people different from us and others with people more similar. Living within this web of connectedness can bring us the greatest of joys and the deepest of challenges. The preferences, patterns, and habits we have learned can both build relational bridges and create great divides. Much o... posted on Aug 02 2019, 8,721 reads

Speechless
"One morning I woke up with no voice, just a faint, breathy whisper. This would be upsetting anytime, but on this particular day it felt as if I were in a fairy tale. In a matter of hours, I was supposed to tell a story and teach mindfulness meditation at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan. And I couldn't make a sound." Parabola's Tracy Cochran shares more in this thought-provoking essay on the ... posted on Aug 01 2019, 7,785 reads

Time for the Wild
In a short and strikingly beautiful cinematic journey to wild places we are asked to think about how we are leaving the natural world for generations to come. What if our children's children could never lay eyes on wild country because it is already destroyed? Spending time in the wild is not a past-time, the narrator tells us, rather it is a biological necessity like water, air and food. The vide... posted on Jul 31 2019, 2,380 reads

Dental Care Where There is No Dentist
In Teeth: The Story of Beauty, Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America, Mary Otto describes how American dentistry came to the point of producing Hollywood smiles for some while leaving enormous gaps in care for others. In this excerpt, she describes a model of accessible, affordable dental care that is used successfully in other countries and now, in some parts of the United State... posted on Jul 30 2019, 4,510 reads

The Literary Prize for the Refusal of Literary Prizes
Highly acclaimed author Ursula K. Le Guin discusses the problematic nature of receiving awards. Among those she says she would like to have is the Sartre Prize for Prize Refusal. Named after Jean-Paul Sartre for refusing the Nobel in 1964, it is coveted by authors who refuse awards in the hopes of being nominated for the Sartre Prize for Prize Refusal. The irony is not lost on Le Guin who refused ... posted on Jul 29 2019, 1,590 reads