One of my favorite field trips as a boy was going to Stinson Beach and seeing the life that thrived in the tide pools. Around the large rocks that dotted the Northern California coast, these “pools” would form that were inhabited by sea anemones, star fish, barnacles, and other mysterious life. These pools of life … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 7–Sometimes You Have to Wait for the Tide to Go Out
There is a lot to be uneasy about right now. This coronavirus is not only deadly, it also seems to be highly contagious. People are dying. They are dying alone. Those that are left behind have to grieve alone. On another level, people are losing their jobs, and their businesses. A lot to be uneasy … Continue reading When We Find Ourselves In Total Chaos
So. This is new. It is hard for me to compare this Coronavirus to anything else in my lifetime. Schools being closed. Professional sports leagues being shuttered. People fighting over toilet paper. My word. What is truly astounding to me is the global nature of the thing. It is involving countries and systems and economies … Continue reading Coronavirus Isn’t the Only Thing that’s Viral
You can learn a lot when talking with your friends about beer. A number of years back now, my wife and I were having dinner with a couple from our faith community. The subject of beer came up, and our friends suddenly went on and on about the evils of alcohol, beer, wine, etc. And … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 5–What I Learned from Talking with My Friends about Beer
For most of civilization, no one pretended that their political and spiritual lives could be compartmentalized. There was no pretension over thinking you could pledge to this or that over here, and then turn around and pledge to this or that over there. For most of history, there was no sacred here, secular there, divinity … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 6–The Spirituality of Pledging
There are a lot of religious people right now that seem genuinely disturbed that other religious people are becoming just like everybody else. And in lots of different ways: in their sexual ethic, their political priorities, their vision of what it means to protect life. And while these are important concerns in their sacred texts, … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 2—Just Like Everybody Else
Sometimes you see something that you just can’t unsee. And no, I’m not talking about that scene in episode 3 of that Netflix show you thought was harmless…until suddenly it wasn’t. No, what I’m talking about is one of those things that you see that you know means more than simply what you are seeing. … Continue reading The Goodness of Grief: Part 10–Like Birds in a Mud Hole
Everyone tells us that the hardest part of the diagnosis is all the tests that you have to run before treatment. Each test promises a restless night of sleep, a wondering if things are actually worse, questions about whether the next step is to administer chemo…or comfort. Brutal. There’s a phrase we tend to use … Continue reading The Goodness of Grief: Part 3–Let Me Tell You About My Other Carbon Footprint
While there is great suffering and pain in loss, there is this other level of suffering and pain that comes with the fear of loss. I don’t know where, if anywhere, fear fits into the classic “grief cycle”, but it seems to me to be a potent part of grief, if only we are allowed … Continue reading The Goodness of Grief: Part 2–Breathe Into It
To date, my wife and I have had only two houseguests that we would have considered challenging. From the moment they entered our home, all they did was eat, keep us up at night, and constantly demand our attention. Never helped with the dishes. Never said thank you. In fact, for the first year, they … Continue reading Older than Dirt: Part 6—The Ten Commandments…Aren’t