Ahhhhhh … Did you feel the collective exhale? Well, at least among more liberal/progressive people, a communal sign slipped out on Saturday morning when we learned that Joseph Biden Jr, and Sen. Kamala Harris were now the presidents and vice president-elect,...
https://youtu.be/KBqT8nYryxM The light, unexpected rain began to lift as we found our hiking group near the lower shelter at John Bryan State Park in central Ohio. It was mid-October and this was one of the first group hikes planned for the duration of the 2020-2021...
https://youtu.be/ZfPdSdCsKr0 We ask the wrong questions. All the time. Maybe it’s the former journalist in me, but I always yearn for us to ask better questions. Lest you think I get it right all the time, I promise you I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. In my...
https://youtu.be/BqdBo1dH6AQ Sometimes sitting in meditation just sucks. There. I said it. People often regale us the stories of blissful, releasing, or enlightening experiences they have. Those times happen, but they are few and far between. My typical practice often...
Many of our routines and rituals have been upended this year. Give yourself a gift this fall by registering for my next online retreat, Reinventing Ritual. We'll discuss what about our past rituals and celebrations have given us purpose or joy, how is the current...
https://youtu.be/nlz9yo3kkvM This just might be the best Birthday Month. Ever. Seriously. Who would have thought that - in a pandemic - my birthday month could have reached this level of awesomeness. Not even I. When I launched my Birthday Month of Connections, I...
When I began planning my crazy Birthday Month of Connections event series, I seriously wondered if anyone would show up. It’s summer, and people want to be outside. People are tired of being on Zoom. “People wouldn’t be interested in hanging out for my birthday,”...
https://youtu.be/2m1RQyb87AI Come network. It's my birthday. Celebrate with me all month during my virtual #BirthdayMonthOfConnections events. Schedule of remaining events here. Birthday hats optional. ***** All I wanted to do was bring cupcakes to class. But, alas,...
I have a very good friend who I call when I’m having a lot of feelings. They tell me that they treasure these rambling voicemail messages that usually start sometime like, “I’m having two or three feelings at one time, and I’m not quite sure what to do …” So the fact...
One of my goals lately has been to keep myself uncomfortable. For white people like me, it is far too easy to tune out the suffering caused by hundreds of years of enslavement, segregation, and mass incarceration of Black people in the U.S. We are made more...
Blame it on being a Generation Xer. In the 80s, we were among the first to have cable TV. And, I, having grown up in Omaha, Nebraska — a test market because of its Midwest “normality” — got access to cable television, even MTV, earlier than some of the rest of...
https://youtu.be/-6o7CCJ1iF4 Climbing on my bike for a ride isn’t just about the exercise. Sure, I need the sweaty, sustained increased heart rate to make my body healthy and to prepare for the races I do, but that’s only the superficial benefit. Taking a bike ride, I...
My mom always regaled me of stories of the one food she craved while pregnant with me: dill pickles. She didn’t crave any other strange foods … just pickles. She worked as a nurses’ aide in a hospital at the time, and she said that the cafeteria workers would give her...
***** Upcoming events! ***** The ideas in this blog are indebted to a number of people of color who have been writing, thinking, speaking and teaching about anti-racism much longer than I have. Here are a few links and resources that really influenced me this week:...
Even before the coronavirus and the advent of social distancing, I took walks almost daily. As someone who lives in about 700-square feet and works in that same space, I knew the importance of getting outside and moving to help the blood and ideas flow during the work...