The Man Who Made Lonesome George Less Lonely
"In the middle of the Pacific the black, volcanic ruins of Pinta Island were once dotted by thousands of "living rocks," Galpagos tortoises chomping prickly cacti, hatching their babies, slowly chasing the equatorial sun. But the island was stripped bare over the 19th century, as hungry whalers discovered that they could be stored as fresh meat for a year without food or water in their ships' hold... posted on Dec 04 2023, 1,758 reads

Pico Iyer on the Wisdom of Travelers
Pico Iyer's latest book, The Half Known Life, looks at the ways in which we seek paradise on earth, sometimes in places that are fraught with risk. In this podcast episode, he and fellow writer Katherine May talk about the similarities in their work, particularly the ways in which they explore secular understandings of big spiritual questions, and they touch on the differences, too."... posted on Dec 03 2023, 1,689 reads

The Vital Role of Beauty Even in War Time
"Art philosopher Arthur Danto wrote that beauty, while optional for art, is not an option for life. Neuroscientists have shown that our brains are biologically wired for beauty: The neural mechanisms that influence attention and perception have adapted to notice color, form, proportion and pattern. We've found that refugees worldwide, often with limited or no legal rights, still invest considerabl... posted on Dec 02 2023, 1,460 reads

Duct Tape and Dreams
Become a kid again! Imagine building a soapbox car; anything you could dream up and build. And then getting to ride it downhill being cheered all the way down. Produced in collaboration with Stink Studios, "Duct Tape and Dreams: Reviving the Soapbox Derby at McLaren Park" captures the creativity, collaboration, and exuberance of everyone who participated and, of course, all that exciting downhill... posted on Dec 01 2023, 1,162 reads

Peace, Love and Good Food
Ruqxana Vasanwala's life exemplifies how cooking a good meal for someone can be an expression of love. Her cooking love is shared with friends and family and extends to her beloved cats as well. As much as Ruqxana enjoys making magic with her cooking, what brings her the most joy is serving her food and watching others relish it in a circle of shared love and enjoyment. It is not just about the fo... posted on Nov 30 2023, 1,630 reads

Why to Get Published
"Anyone who publishes a book is immediately asked versions of the same question, "How do you get published?"I have been asked by everyone from colleagues and former students to healthcare providers and complete strangers. Behind the question used to be the assumption that the published author has access to some secret, insider knowledge. A former editor of mine spoke occasionally at conferences, a... posted on Nov 29 2023, 2,802 reads

Reconciliation as a Way of Life: White Women & Settler Coloniali
A descendant of White settlers of Indigenous lands, Margaret Jacobs is an award-winning author and professor of history and gender studies who has focused for over two decades on Indigenous child removal and family separation. She studies the history of the American West in a transnational and comparative context with a focus on women, children, and families. Her Bancroft Prize-winning book, White... posted on Nov 28 2023, 1,248 reads

How Rituals Support Us
"I dont know if I could have survived seven years of my childhood without the soul-saving rituals of my Persian culture. I grew up amid the Iran-Iraq War, which killed a million people. Besides the horrors of the war, freedom of thought and expression were severely restricted in Iran after the Islamic revolution. Women bore the brunt of this as, in a matter of months, we were forced to ditch our p... posted on Nov 27 2023, 2,292 reads

Personal Integrity in C.P. Cavafy's Poetry
"The current world situation, with war raging in the Middle East and Ukraine, presents a particular challenge to those people who wish to take a unified perspective one which goes beyond polarities and tribalism in search of justice and humanity. It is hard to know how to respond. At such a time, the gentle but insistent voice of Constantine Cavafy, the modern Greek poet, carries a welcome remind... posted on Nov 26 2023, 1,400 reads

A Family Reunion at the End of the World
"Have you ever been at a reunion or a big party, when the plates are empty and conversations wind down and you think about leaving? Then you hear peals of laughter, the clatter of dishes, and contagious giggles from behind the kitchen door. Thats where the real party is, as the aunties portion out leftovers to be taken home, scrape the dishes, and laugh with their hands in hot soapy water, snappin... posted on Nov 25 2023, 1,963 reads