Inadequacy covered me like a smothering blanket. Typing up the description to our first-ever foray into teaching a Mindfully Embracing Anti-Racism series, I heard the whispers of nagging voices in my head saying, “Who are you to do this?” and “You don’t know what...
I don’t remember much from sixth grade, but I have vivid memories of my teacher’s after-lunch reading ritual. The ritual was simple: We’d read our way through a book, a chapter at a time each day after lunch and recess. I’m terrible at remembering details, but somehow...
When I was in seminary, I took a class on theologies of atonement with Rev. Dr. Joanne Terrell. She introduced us to the many Christian theologies of how humanity and God are reconciled through Jesus Christ. (I know. I know. This post is getting a little theologically...
I had been combatting the habits of white supremacy for years, and I didn’t even know it. When I first started working as regional church denominational staff, I got called by churches to help them figure out what they needed to do to attract young people. I’d take a...
When I started doing yoga, I mostly did a physical practice. Yoga teachers love to give beginners a chair pose. It’s simple – sit your hips back like you’re about to sit in a chair and then raise your arms over your head. I wasn’t particularly athletic when I began,...
After the murder of George Floyd, I felt like I was caught in a trap that pinioned me back into thinking that there is only one right way to do antiracism work. This notion itself is a racist trap, causing me to believe that I should have one brilliant “right way” to...
One of my first ministry jobs was as a chaplain at a residential treatment facility for young people with mental illness and behavioral disorders. I worked each week with groups of these young people to prepare and lead our chapel service. Those young people, full of...
Warning: This blog post is going to get a little woo-woo. I’m not inclined toward long flights of ethereal new age speak or reflection on religious mysticism. But this past year has been a very different time. So strap in for a little woo-woo. When social distancing...
In 2020, my creativity felt a lot like a bouncing ping pong ball. Some days the rap of the hollow white ball on the table was rapid and constant – your eyes and ears could scarcely keep track of its rapid-fire tapping. Other days, it hit with one dull thud and then...
One of my favorite teachers in high school was Mr. Wirth, a history and social studies teacher. Long before multiple intelligences techniques were regularly employed in education, he handed out colored-paper packets for each study unit that had hand-drawn cartoons on...
A few months into pandemic lockdowns, a friend and I were talking about how hard life was in that moment. We concluded that our “best” (whatever that means) kinda sucks right now. Our sucky best is not a result of a lack of hard work, knowledge, skills, or discipline....
When you think of love, what immediately pops into your mind? I’m a little ashamed to admit that my mind most immediately jumps to my favorite rom-coms — When Harry Met Sally, Keeping the Faith or the 1980s TV show Moonlighting (Remember that?) I can’t get enough of...
Leading up to the third Sunday of Advent this year, I kept thinking about the 2006 movie “The Pursuit of Happyness.” The movie stars Will Smith as Chris Gardner, an aspiring entrepreneur and sales person who gets an opportunity to do an unpaid stockbroker internship...
“Peace can be difficult to feel because of the chaos that surrounds us.” I wrote that line more than a year ago for my 2019 Mindful Advent series, but is really true now. Everything in this year feels like chaos — the disruption of a pandemic, the helplessness created...
For the past few years on Thanksgiving, I’ve watched Brother David-Steindel-Rast’s Ted Talk about gratitude and happiness. He simply and elegantly points out that every moment is a gift for which to be grateful. Can you be grateful for everything that happens in every...