For decades I’ve had knitting spurts. I’d knit for a few weeks or months — then stop — often for years at a time. It gave me so much joy — until it didn’t. Now I’m back in the mood, but this time, as part of a monthly practice of daily knitting, I’ve been untangling […]
Monthly Practices
Practicing Moderation
Last month it seemed as if my schedule blew up. Every week I had three online classes (with homework) and at least three meetings, as well as helping a friend launch her website and a hefty amount of zazen. I treasured each of those pieces, but the sum total was too much. Not to mention […]
Eliminating “Fun” Shopping For Ten Months
Today I decided to give up unnecessary, “fun” shopping until May, 2021, so I won’t buy clothing, kitchen equipment, etc., for the next 10 months.
Compassion Cultivation Training and Clergy Sexual Abuse
14 months ago I had a tip-of-the-tongue taste of Stanford’s Compassion Cultivation Training and it changed my life. Astonishing. It was only a 1.5 day workshop — a synthesized version of their 8-week program. That it had such an impact has to do with my history. For 23 years I was what’s termed a “survivor […]
Dropping “Hurry” From My Vocabulary
For the lovely month of May, my practice will be taking my time or, to be more specific, dropping the word “hurry” from my vocabulary. Why? Almost a year ago, Uncle Phil, a vigorous, modest, and still mentally acute 93-year-old, emailed his family a PDF about aging well. It’s 2-page treasure (which I’ll link to […]