Do we have better and worse years? Years we wish we could repeat over and over and those we wish never happened? I think so, to some extent at least. Do I wish either of those for 2008? No. Did I make great strides in life and also some pretty big mistakes? Yes. Is hindsight 20/20? Not always. Just as we don’t know what the future will bring us, we also don’t know what past ‘mistakes’ might turn out in... Read more

As per my last post, here is a great talk by motivational speaker, Tony Robbins, from the TED series. Absolutely worth a watch when you need a little spark in your step (on the path from suffering to awakening). Tony Robbins discusses the “invisible forces” that motivate everyone’s actions — and high-fives Al Gore in the front row. http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf Read more

“Our narrative approach to ethics is founded on the assumption that our understanding of good and evil is primarily shaped by the kind of story we think we are in and the role we see ourselves playing in that story.” – Fasching and Dechant, Comparative Religious Ethics: A Narrative Approach p.6 What is the story we think we are in? For me – here – it is that of an American Buddhist. But how American I consider myself is certainly... Read more

‘Tis the season in which nature brings us to utmost darkness. We rebel with our candles, our warm smiles and the joy of family and community. And we dance, and we sing, and feast, knowing that by such gaiety we might lure back our old friend, the sun. In the midst of these celebrations we create myths and legends and we retell the best of those from years gone by.Soon, the beginning of a new year. New faces, new adventures,... Read more

We’re speaking about a mental or spiritual prison, but it has the same meaning as a concrete prison… People are actually delighted to go and get locked up in spiritual prison. This is a very queer aspect of the spiritual prison. – Buddhadasa, “The Prison of Life” Along the same theme of my last post, The Seduction of the Commonplace, we find this from the Venerable Buddhadasa Bhikkhu from Thailand. Another story I heard recently comes from Geshe Michael Roach,... Read more

In a review of “The Last Temptation of Christ,” Miles Bethany noted: But the “last temptation” of the title is nothing overtly naughty–rather, it’s the seduction of the commonplace; the desire to forgo following a “calling” in exchange for domestic security. I had not read the review, nor heard the phrase “the seduction of the commonplace” (so far as I can remember) when the words seemed to roll forth into my mind like the singing of a Tibetan bowl when... Read more

I’m back from Kansas now and it was lovely. I am blessed with a great family and just wish we weren’t all so spread out across the country. I’ll be sure to blog about the trip more soon, but for now here are a couple photos: My grandparents: Nancy (Doyle) and Robert “Bob” Whitaker on their wedding day, June 16, 1946 – Both served in the U.S. Army in WW II. Their four kids: Pat (my dad) and Bob, Mary... Read more

This week, amidst the buzz and bluster of a very busy week, my (paternal) grandmother passed away. Yesterday was also my mother’s birthday. So it was auspicious that Debbie over at A Buddhist Catholic had this quote on her page this week: Magna Mater (Great Mother) pays homage to the life-giving aspect of women, affirming the ongoing nature of life. It is the journey of Motherhood and the path of the two traveling as one. It is the ultimate gift... Read more

As usual, there is plenty to be thankful for these days. Abundance and wonderful activities seem to be everywhere I look. And, as usual, this means I’m busy busy busy. Last Friday was the opening of the show for the photos from the Wilderness Institute trip to Glacier that I was on. Good friends Patia and Jen, and of course miss Julie, all came out in support (thank you!). And then it was off to scope out other art before... Read more

Find happy people to be around and you will also find happiness itself, reports the New York Times. 🙂 Read more