Last night, we had a house meeting, mostly to talk about specific issues that have come up in the house recently - minor disagreements, to be sure, but major enough that all voices needed to be heard at once. I usually approach conflict with hearty dose of curiosity, a dash of apprehension, and a sprinkle … Continue reading How do you respond to conflict?

My grandparents used to run St. Raphael's Retreat House in Evergreen, Colorado, for The Church of the Transfiguration, an Episcopal Church where my dear Granddad was an associate minister and my Grandmom played the organ and directed the choir. My mom, dad, brother, sister, and I lived 90 minutes away in Colorado Springs and we … Continue reading House of Healing

I used to think I'd really like to go to college. I still think that, sometimes. I love learning. My curiosity is insatiable! I daydream about spending my days reading interesting books and having interesting discussions with interesting teachers and classmates. But, there's something about the end goal of getting a degree that seems to suck … Continue reading What good is impatience?

They say that spring is a good time for a cleanse, a time to eat lightly after the heavy, warming foods of winter. Of course, many of us "spring clean" in the house and yard, airing out the stuffy vestiges of winter from our homes. I think I need a cleanse of my head and my … Continue reading Baby steps.

I recently read an article in The New Yorker in which the reporter visits Tunisia, the country whose revolution tipped off the Arab Spring. Egypt, Libya, and Yemen all followed suit and ousted their government leaders (and many more Arab countries had civil uprisings of various intensity - read more here). The only nation with a functioning democracy … Continue reading Mahknouk.

Last night, I hosted and co-moderated an interfaith panel discussion. Mostly, the conversation centered around compassion. How do we know what it is? Why is it sometimes so hard to live with compassion? In preparation for the discussion, my co-facilitator took one of my questions in our Google Doc, something like "why is it difficult … Continue reading What is compassion?

Revolutions that succeed are always for something rather than merely against this or that. But if we’re serious about what we’re for, we need to name what we’re willing to stand openly against. It’s not enough to say “Yes!” to things like love, truth, and justice without saying a loud, clear “No!” to their ruthless enemies, … Continue reading Can you say yes without saying no?

“We are all meant to be mothers of God. What good is it to me if this eternal birth of the divine Son takes place unceasingly but does not take place within myself? And, what good is it to me if Mary is full of grace if I am not also full of grace? What … Continue reading What to do with a childless mother?

What is a name but a vocalized jumble of consonants and vowels by which others call you? Your name is the sound your mother whispered to you, exhausted and sweaty, in the first moments of your life. The sound your best friend yelled across the gym locker room. The sound your partner moans in your … Continue reading What’s in a name?

O Goddess How sorry I am to have ignored you for so long, to have rejected your loving embrace You are at once fierce and compassionate, wild and gentle, ineffable and concrete. You encompass all the earth and the far reaches of the cosmos. You support and nourish all, you emerge from all - even … Continue reading Tara’s Tears