Michael Penn: On Hopelessness and Hope
Michael Penn's life abounds with uncommon stories. The son of a Cherokee father and an African American mother, he spent part of his childhood living in a converted school bus on land gifted to the family by his great grandmother who had been a slave. That humble beginning launched him into a lifetime of unaccountable twists of fate, including a miraculous encounter with the woman who would become... posted on Sep 28 2018, 3,180 reads

The Man Who Planted Trees
Who says a single person can't make a difference? This Academy Award-winning short film, based on an exquisitely wrought story by Jean Giono was created in 1987 by renowned animator Frederick Back. It beautifully illustrates the fable of one shepherd's long effort to re-forest a desolate valley in the foothills of the Alps near Provence in the first half of the 20th century. Embedded within this s... posted on Sep 27 2018, 3,774 reads

One Teacher's Brilliant response to Columbine
"A few weeks ago, I went into my son Chase's class for tutoring. I'd e-mailed Chase's teacher one evening and said, "Chase keeps telling me that this stuff you're sending home is math, but I'm not sure I believe him. Help, please." She e-mailed right back and said, "No problem! I can tutor Chase after school anytime." And I said, "No, not him. Me. He gets it. Help me." And that's how I ended up st... posted on Sep 26 2018, 21,227 reads

As A Doctor, I Am Looking to Make Common Cause
"As residents, we worked and lived in the hospital so many nights. It felt like home. On one of my days off, in street clothes, jeans and a t shirt, I went into the hospital to finish dictating some patient notes. It was morning. There was a metal detector coming into the hospital. I collected my stale coffee from the cafeteria. Later that morning, I got stopped by a police guard coming out of the... posted on Sep 25 2018, 10,128 reads

Odes to Ordinary Things
Inspired by the gift of a book of "Odes to Common Things" by Pablo Neruda, the editors at A Network for Grateful Living, extended an invitation to submit odes to "ordinary things." The response was happy and immediate. Their inbox steadily filled with poems celebrating weeds, streetlights, shoes and crickets. There were love letters to a blender bottle, an acorn, slippers, an iPad -- even to the v... posted on Sep 24 2018, 9,870 reads

Lyla June: Time Traveler
Life is about "the song that travels through" you. This song of life "lives on through matrilineal lines", time traveling across generations and cultures. This has always been work shepherded by fiercely tender women. In this music video, spoken-word artist Lyla June offers a poetic reflection on time and the wisdom needed to care for future generations.... posted on Sep 23 2018, 15,547 reads

Horse Herd Dynamics & the Art of Organizational Success
"The horse herd is a 40-million-year-old system that not only succeeds, it thrives. This endurance defies the conventional definition of sustainability and invites us to learn something from these powerful, wise and sensitive animals. Allegorical use of horses as a window into the management of our own social organizations may seem at best romantic, and at worst a cheap stretch. We are not animals... posted on Sep 22 2018, 21,744 reads

The Psychology of Self-Righteousness
"When it comes to moral judgments, we think we are scientists discovering the truth, but actually we are lawyers arguing for positions we arrived at by other means." The surprising psychology behind morality is at the heart of social psychologist Jonathan Haidt's research. He explains "liberal" and "conservative" not narrowly or necessarily as political affiliations, but as personality types ways ... posted on Sep 21 2018, 17,691 reads

Awakening Through Writing
Albert Flynn DeSilver's latest book is out, Writing as a Path to Awakening: A Year to Becoming an Excellent Writer and Living an Awakened Life. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon interviews the author, poet, and leader of writing workshops about the difference between writing as a creative endeavor and writing as a gateway to spiritual inquiry. They also discuss how to explore dif... posted on Sep 20 2018, 10,977 reads

Change the Worldview, Change the World
At the heart of every culture is a story of how the world came to be and what that means for us. Look closer and you'll find many more narratives that comprise our collective consciousness. In the case of the Western world, problems like white supremacy, misogyny, and ecological hostility are all disconnected storylines that have been kept alive year after year. In this compelling essay, author Dr... posted on Sep 19 2018, 12,063 reads