Much of the music available for our consumption portends an unmistakable truth: love is hell. It’s not the actual truth, but it’s believable because we’ve all felt heartbreak and loss and we ascribe that to love. More than that, music also reveals an underlying message about the parameters of love: monogamy— it’s mine and I don’t have to share you or our love with anyone else. Music, along with movies, advertisements, political campaigns, and the rest of the societal programming... Read more
Throughout all stages of our life, we are taught a way to limit our love. As infants we understand love to mean food and security. We receive that from limited, accountable people—our parents. As we grow, we are instructed on love. Some of us are taught that loving our parents and siblings and relatives is the extent of our love circumference. We slowly incorporate more people into that circle—friends, love acquaintances, co-workers, neighbors, etc. In every regard, however, we are... Read more
Love Love is madness. It is chaos. It’s a cataclysmic collision that unfolds everything we know about reality and shows us how blind we were. Love gives life to color. When it’s present, it reflects its brilliance on every verdant blade of grass in your view. It illuminates the sky to the most extraordinary shade of blue that you almost believe you’ve never seen such a magnificent color before. Every shade and tint—it is new, fierce, bold, and blinding. Like... Read more
In our societies, many of us look for ways to compare, contrast, compete and sometimes condescend others. We do this for many reasons. A lot of it is based on manufactured offense. The first step is to find ways in which we can identify with or disidentify from others. It’s a way to separate ourselves from those who disagree with us, oppose us, or challenge us. Put bluntly, it’s so we can draw a line in the sand to show... Read more
I don’t know about you, but I have been observing the lengths people will go to shame others for not wearing a mask. I posed questions on my Facebook page to inquire about what other people were observing and experiencing. I was also curious about what others thought about those who decline the option of wearing a mask. Many people seem to believe that if you don’t wear a mask it’s because you don’t care about others and that wearing... Read more
During a crisis, one finds themselves questioning their beliefs—or at least I do. I question what I believe to be true. I ask myself if there are enough puzzle pieces available to unveil the image others claim is visible. In a recent recording, one of my guests, Jack Call—author of Psychedelic Christianity, put it this way, “I didn’t want to call myself a Christian unless I really believed those things that Christians believe.” He later alluded to the fact that... Read more
Fear has taken over and it seems to have control—of our minds and our hearts. Who do we believe? What do we do? Where will we go from here? I know I am not the only one sitting in silence and isolation considering these very things. Social media has gifted all of us the possibility to really read the fears of others. Not only are the fears of others revealed, but with that, the triggers, the trauma, and the deep-seated... Read more
How does one even find the words to offer to an audience that has been confronted with ultimate fears? How can we encourage others when we are just as frightened as those in need of comfort? How can we offer compassion during a crisis? I have wrestled between compassion and cynicism, with the inner cynic winning out in many instances, causing me to put myself on a social media time-out, almost every day. (Yeah, I try again every day, and... Read more
Worry can get the best of you and fear can overwhelm you and make you vulnerable enough to believe just about anything. Panic produces propaganda and conspiracy theories, and these should be avoided altogether during any crisis. However, I still have my reservations about this “social distancing” that the world is calling for. Wikipedia defines “social distancing” as: A set of nonpharmaceutical infection control actions intended to stop or slow down the spread of a contagious disease. The objective of... Read more
Just in case you have been living in complete isolation (and are therefore probably safer than the majority of the population), there is a global pandemic affecting us. Coronavirus or COVID-19 has been infecting the world for the last 60 days. First reported in Wuhan, Hubei, China in late December 2019, the virus has made its way across the globe. As of today, 22 countries have called for the closing of public schools and universities. Today, according to the CDC,... Read more
Danielle Kingstrom
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