For the last few weeks it has felt as if I know less and less each day, and much less than when I started the Buddhist Contemplative Care course. I’ve walked away from more than a few patients thinking that I didn’t do enough, didn’t say the right words, couldn’t relieve them of even a [...]
Sesshin—a silent meditation retreat—has always been a time of renewal and reflection for me. And, if I’m lucky, I’ll gain some new insight. The sesshin over this past weekend was the same, but different. There was more free time than I’m used to and I got more sleep than ever, which is quite unusual. But [...]
The journey of writing my first mystery novel One Hand Killing, about murder in a monastery—which I thought would be easier than any other work of fiction, Ha!—has been long and enlightening. I think I started writing it sometime back around the turn of this century (it’s so weird to think of it that way!) [...]
There’s nothing quite like a hot bowl of soup on a cold winter night. A warm wedge of cornbread to go with, and a salad on the side will make for a complete and easy meal. Maybe it’s the southern in me (my mom—and the cooking I grew up with—is from South Carolina) but I [...]
The beginning of each New Year is a perfect time for reflection and looking forward, whether or not we’ve made a New Year’s vow, so that we might return to the present moment with gratitude and peace. Here are a few short poems to contemplate and carry with us as we breathe each breath and [...]
