Poems For These Times
The Resonance Today of Szymborska’s poem Hatred
The headlines are hard these days. Perhaps they are always hard, for someone somewhere. Polish poet Wislawa Szymborska, wrote the poem “Hatred” in 1993; she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1996. Her words still ring true with this morning’s headlines. Hatred See how efficient it still is, how it keeps itself in […]
No One Leaves Home Unless Home Is the Mouth of a Shark
Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine one month ago today. We all have had to come to terms with the suffering and devastation wrought by Vladimir Putin’s madness. (“Thug” was the term used in the last week’s Guardian Weekly.) And we do that in a multitude of ways, offering housing for refugees, sending donations to […]
What Schools Don’t Teach Black Boys in America Today
February 21, 2022 is President’s Day in the U.S., commemorating the men (so far) who have navigated this country’s struggle for equality and freedom. We know the paradoxes cut deep. Thomas Jefferson penned the magnificent words We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their […]
Finding Each Other – Poetry for Valentine’s Day
February 14 is Saint Valentine’s Day, a feast day in the early Christian Church since the 5th century A.D. to commemorate the death of the martyr Saint Valentine. The Feast of Saint Valentine became associated with romantic or courtly love in the 14th and 15th centuries, according to Wikipedia. While not a government holiday in […]
The Sacred in the Self
I originally wrote Bouncing Back to reconcile my own inner confusion about the value of so many practices of psychotherapy to strengthen a healthy, authentic sense of self, and the value of so many practices in Eastern contemplative traditions to experience the freedom and ease of non-self. Both necessary, neither sufficient. I came up with […]
Homage to Thich Nhat Hanh
Photo courtesy of Plum Village The venerable Buddhist teacher and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh died Saturday, January 22, 2022, in his homeland Vietnam at the age of 95. Here’s the link to the Lion’s Roar article honoring his life and teachings. And here’s Thay’s own poem, Oneness, about his own death, reminding us, as […]
Wisdom and Hope for the New Year – New Day’s Lyric from Amanda Gorman
Passing on to you this “extra” resource for recovering hope and resilience: a New Day’s Lyric from our beloved National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman. May you be inspired and uplifted for the healing possibilities of the new year. New Day’s Lyric May this be the day We come together. Mourning, we come to mend, […]
A Blessing for the New Year
Here’s the annual offering of this wonderful Blessing for the New Year by Kayleen Asbo, as timely and relevant as ever; may it encourage and inspire you and yours: BLESSING FOR THE NEW YEAR As the hours of darkness begin to slowly wane from the winter sky, So too may the fearful places of your […]
Wisdom about the Ordinary Life
In the lull between the holidays, it might be good to remember the deeply simple joys of ordinary life, with deep bows of gratitude for every anything bad that didn’t happen. Ordinary Life By Barbara Crooker This was a day when nothing happened, the children went off to school without a murmur, remembering their books, […]
Christmas Carols – Verses speaking in 2021 to the compassionate heart of this holiday season
Christmas is a mixed bag for many people. Joyful if the tradition re-awakens deep aspirations for peace in one’s own heart as well as on earth, if there is health and happiness in the home, with resources to nourish generosity and resonant connections to nourish the heart. And if there is illness, or poverty, or […]