What one photograph taught me about wonder, interconnectedness, and the miracle of being Trees have long thoughts, long-breathing and restful, just as they have longer lives than ours. They are wiser than we are, as long as we do not listen to them. But when we have learned how to listen to trees, then the […]
Contemplative photography promotes silence, renewal, and seeing more deeply On the evening this photograph was made, the dominant sound in this airport parking lot was birds—a stark contrast to the busyness and clamor of cars, shuttle-busses and conversations that once pervaded it day and night for several years. The difference between the activity then and […]
What we are not, can reveal what we are in essence Every photograph I’ve ever made is a portrait of impermanence. After the shutter clicks, the subject changes. The light grows brighter or darker. A cloud moves. A flower fades. A child grows older. A face changes. Even mountains—given enough time—rise and disappear. Photography teaches […]
Finding Trust, Meaning and Direction When Life’s River Turns into Rapids Train tracks at night—a metaphor for the lighted way At times, the placid stream of life suddenly turns into rapids. Then the rapids become a torrent. Linda and I, now in our mid-80s, have recently experienced how quickly this can happen. Within just a […]
What the Olympics are Teaching Us About Human Unity I’m not a sports person. Nonetheless, I have a deep appreciation for some of its guiding principles. From little league baseball to the sport of champions, sportsmanship demonstrates the effectiveness of whole systems thinking. Proud parents often observe that their children learn what it takes to […]
“The Force” and “The Way” — Avatars, Movies, and the Future of Human Flourishing I hadn’t thought much about the word “avatar” until James Cameron’s movie came out. After enjoying it immensely, I realized that he’d used technology to analogously portray the spirit-to-matter process whereby Divine Spirit vibrationally “individuates” a life force or soul, which […]
How Love is Learned, Modeled and Shared From Early Childhood on Kinds Of Love Love is a family of capacities. Some forms occur through biology, others through relationship and still others through deliberate moral and spiritual cultivation. As a felt experience, many types have been identified. Eros is romantic or erotic; Philia is friendship and […]
A Practice of Compassion, Presence and Shared Humanity After placing an order at a fast food restaurant takeout menu, Linda pulled up to the window. I was in the passenger seat. She handed over the money and moments later, when the bag of food was delivered she noticed a sandwich was missing. She waved to […]
The feeling we get when touched by something vast Clinical psychologist Neil Farber defines awe as “an overwhelming feeling associated with vastness, reverence, wonder and at times a touch of fear; a sense of transcending day-to-day human experience in the presence of something extraordinary. Awe is inspired by objects or events that are considered to […]
Whether books, baseball cards or baby dolls, they reflect the soul’s agenda… We come here for a reason. Once here, the soul guides us, in part, by the way’s we’re compelled to feed it. Specifically, we activate the endowments (gifts) we were born with, those that drive our interest and motivation to grow and contribute, […]
Contemplative Photography 