What Makes Humans Unstoppable? Shared Stories

Last updated on: July 16, 2024 at 9:06 am By Tricia Gates Brown

I’ve long appreciated Yuval Noah Harari’s book Sapiens(2014). And I recently enjoyed a discussion of his newer book Unstoppable Us, How Humans Took Over the World, on a favorite podcast ‘The Gray Area with Sean Illing.’ Harari makes some similar assertions in these books, namely that humans have transcended other species because—of all things—we were able to pass on great stories. Sacred stories. Shared stories. Basically, we prevail because we spin a good yarn; and a good yarn builds cohesion, allowing... Read more

Knowing You Belong: The Empowerment and Peril of Identity

Last updated on: July 2, 2024 at 7:41 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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{A meditation on Mark 6:1-13} Jesus was a small-town guy. His village of Nazareth had a population of just a few hundred people. And I want to give a sense distance as we think about the stories in the gospels. Because most of Jesus’ ministry and teaching took place around the Sea of Galilee; and the distance from the Sea of Galilee to Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth was roughly 30 miles. These were tiny communities, in which everyone likely knew... Read more

A Short Meditation on Silence: Needing a Break from Chatter

Last updated on: June 24, 2024 at 7:08 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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The hay now rises to shoulder-height and I walk a path around the field mowed by our John Deere. To my right and to my left, hay—stout and emerald green—sways listlessly, gracefully. If I sat down, no one would find me. In this age, it feels as if everyone is talking; and increasingly, I am weary of the chatter. Increasingly, I don’t want to be found. Social media renders each of us CEO of our private media organizations and we’re... Read more

Beyond the Fray: Meditation and the Story of Jesus at Sea

Last updated on: June 18, 2024 at 7:22 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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I’m part of a tradition that uses the lectionary, and this coming Sunday, one of our readings is about Jesus in a boat in a storm; a passage very familiar for some. Jesus and his disciples pass across a lake when a storm arises and the boat becomes overwhelmed. Naturally, the disciples are afraid for their lives, but Jesus sleeps blissfully in the stern. They are incredulous. “Don’t you even care about us?!” they ask him. But he calmly commands... Read more

Why the Slow Work of Transformation Beats Legalism

Last updated on: June 11, 2024 at 8:02 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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Transformation beats moralism. But as a young adult, effort was my mantra. And effort, coupled with an adolescent zest to save the world, was perilous. In my early 20s, I stumbled my way through so many “good deeds,” it is painful to look back. The time I began buying food for a physically challenged, low-income woman and her teenaged daughter, then was unable to continue after one month, despite creating an impression of commitment. They welcomed me into their tiny... Read more

Overcoming Anxiety: Mental Health Recovery and Hope

Last updated on: June 5, 2024 at 6:46 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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It is there as I do the things I love—from drinking my morning latte to nuzzling my cats to chatting with my husband, walking a path through tall grass, creating and working and falling asleep at the end of the day. It is present in every moment in between. When one is dealing with anxiety, it can be omnipresent and distracting, stealing one’s attention from the things that make life feel worthwhile and beautiful. Anxiety is like having a switch... Read more

Approaching Wisdom With Emptiness: Two Characters from John

Last updated on: May 28, 2024 at 7:09 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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This week in my tradition we read the story about Nicodemus. But I can’t think of this story, without also thinking about the next chapter of John and the story it features—about the woman from Samaria. These stories and their juxtaposition are strategic; and they are all about contrast. We understand Nicodemus better because of the woman from Samaria. And we understand this woman better because of her contrast with Nicodemus. The author of John frequently paints contrasts. At times... Read more

Bridging Distance: Discovering the Joys of Audio-Messaging

Last updated on: May 22, 2024 at 7:08 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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A friend I’ve known for 25 years, who lives on the other side of the country, invited me to communicate in a new way—by audio text. At first, she would send a 5 to 8-minute message as she paused in her day, telling me about a recent excursion she’d taken, or something she’d written. And I would respond by typing out a traditional text. I was reluctant to adopt the new practice, being that I’m generally taciturn. But after a... Read more

Happiness is Bite-Sized: Finding Joy in Simple Moments

Last updated on: May 14, 2024 at 7:17 am By Tricia Gates Brown

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Today I played Kate Rusby’s ‘Hourglass’ and was transported to years living in St. Andrews, Scotland at the close of the millennium. Those two years were seriously hard—not least because I was often ill. But the sad songs on that album ring gladness for me. A fiddle-pipe duet on ‘Annan Waters’ sends shivers, it’s so beautiful—even if the tune, like most English folk songs, is tragic, narrating the story of a woman who drowns, never again to see her love.... Read more

Love Beyond Our Species: Relationships that Challenge Ego

Last updated on: May 11, 2024 at 8:03 pm By Tricia Gates Brown

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Someone famous said having children is like having your heart run around in someone else’s body. Then here’s this heart of mine, frolicking off in the runt-body of a barn kitten I’d name “Eloise”—a creature barely the size of a rat. Love is always risky, but the perils of falling for something so vulnerable seem pronounced. With kohl lining around her eyes like an Egyptian queen, and orange-and-white candy-striped legs, Eloise is the most beautiful cat I’ve seen. The rest... Read more