Tender, Fierce and Wise

A few weeks ago, I read this poem by Naomi Shihab Nye. Shoulders "A man crosses the street in rain, stepping gently, looking two times north and south, because his son is asleep on his shoulder. No car must splash him. No car drive too near to his shadow. This man carries the world’s most...

Today in the resistance: Say their names

Two years ago yesterday (June 17, 2015), Dylann Roof, a 21-year-old white supremacist, shot and killed 9 people at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. I wrote this poem then, and post it again today. Let us remember to say their names. On my heart and in my mind today is...

Struck: An essay with all the feelings

Somewhere between the hummus and the black beans at Safeway, my brain convinced me I was dying. I know this sounds like hyperbole, but I'm actually serious.  The rational part of me kicked in fairly quickly and talked me down to possibly dying, probably vomiting, maybe passing out somewhere near the bakery. It's been a...

Thin Places

I had never heard the phrase "thin places" until recently. I was talking with an acquaintance, who was describing a beautiful, magical place she visited in the mountains where she had something of a spiritual experience. "It was one of those thin places," she said. "You know?" I didn't know, but I pretended I did....