Writing

Walking in our Values

The planet is heating up and growing more crowded each year, with increasing numbers of climate refugees as well as those fleeing war or oppressive rule. Democratic institutions and values are under assault by authoritarian leaders and movements around the world and in the U.S. We need to make significant changes to the way our society is structured, to transform the economy from one of extractive capitalism rooted in systems of racial oppression to a true commonwealth in which all people have a voice and are treated with dignity.

As we do that work for a better, more equitable world tomorrow, we also need to live our values today. While we advocate for change, we also need to be the change we want to see in the world. The moment we are in calls for creative ways to be in community together, to make decisions that include diverse and dissenting voices, to appreciate the unique gifts each of us brings to the table. One powerful way to do that is through a restorative practice called Circle. Read more

Writing as a Spiritual Practice

My wife Courtney and I spent our first five months as parents in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.  When our daughter Lucy was born over three months before her due date, there was little we could do for her other than sit by the side of her isolette and read story books to her. 

In the beginning, we cared for Lucy in close collaboration with the incredible nurses and other medical professionals who were working hard to keep her alive.  In time, the nurses encouraged us to get involved in Lucy’s day to day care, at first in little ways like taking her temperature or replacing her Sat probes, then stepping up to bigger tasks like giving her a sponge bath in a pink hospital basin. Read more

Reflections on Storytelling

“Let me tell you a story.”  There is something so simple and elegant about this modest plea, usually made by one friend to another.  We are storytellers and each of us has a deeply held desire to share our stories, to hear the stories of others, to find those threads that connect us and give meaning to our lives.  Storytelling, that act of pausing and being present with one another, is an essential part of being human. Read more

Imagining Sisyphus Happy

Imagine living with a machine that controls your emotions.  The machine is not some kind of automated Dr. Feelgood enabling you to program your preferred mood each day.  You do not control the machine.  The machine controls you.  During the day, it sits on the end table by your couch and at night it is several feet from your bedroom door.  You must always remain within hearing distance of its alarms. Read more

How to travel in a pandemic

My wife and I both grew up watching Masterpiece Mysteries on Sunday nights with our families and, early in our relationship, we bonded on this shared television experience.  For the past twenty years, we have kept up that Sunday night tradition, making our way through an embarrassing number of British mysteries and crime dramas. Read more

‘The World of Lard’

Whatever happened to Bernardo Ruiz?  It’s not a question I often dwell on, but one that occasionally emerges like a spectre from the past.  With the help of some Facebook sleuthing, I could probably track him down.  But that’s been true for almost twenty years now and I’ve yet to do it.  This ability to reconnect with people from our past, however tenuous the connection then or now, is a mixed blessing.  It can facilitate surprising reunions, even rekindle friendships, but often the renewed connection is just a reminder of why you fell out of touch in the first place. Read more