When I turned 40, my social media feed changed. I’ve always gotten some advertisements for yoga and other fitness products and programs. I’m a yoga teacher, so I’m a good target for those kinds of ads. Likewise, I’ve always seen at least a handful of ads for makeup and hair products. But it seemed…
Tag: anxiety
When I was a kid, I spent many of my summers attending YMCA Day Camp programs. I grew up in Frederick, MD, and the region is blessed with abundant parks and forests. For each session of summer camp I attended, I had a buddy assigned to me. One of the camp field trips I went…
I don’t mean to go all Ned Stark on everyone, but…well… In years without a pandemic, we would be preparing for the last of the harvest celebrations and planning the journey of the inward spiral: the time of turning within for healing, nurturing, and personal growth. This year, of course, is different. Many of my…
This sermon was for the September 13th streaming service for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Frederick. I like to remind myself that I would have lived. That several thousand years ago, I would have known that sometimes when the grasses rustle, it’s because there’s an apex predator behind them feeling a bit peckish. I would…
This sermon was for the July 19th, 2020, service for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Frederick. Text below. I can always tell when a writer doesn’t actually spend much time outside. I’ve read so many stories where the forest is described as quiet. Even in the middle of winter, quiet is not a thing that…
I am a lifelong insomniac with mild narcolepsy. I do pretty well with the falling asleep part, but once I’m there it’s tough to remain. Because of that, when I do finally slip into deep sleep, my REM phase or dreaming phase can be intense. Cue mild narcolepsy. My brain has problems shifting the gears…
A little over 20 years ago, I joined the Marine Corps. Yeah, most people make that face when they find out. I know it does not seem terribly likely. It is, however, 100% true. What can I say? At age 18, I desperately needed the structure and discipline of the military. To be utterly frank,…
I have nightmares about the ocean. They never start off scary. In my dreams, I am excited to go to the beach. It’s often the same seaside town I visit in my slumbering journey: a rather New England-looking village that slopes down a hill toward the shore. Cheerful buildings, boardwalk, winding sidewalks and narrow roads,…
Can you hear it? That super-high-pitched whining sound just above our range of hearing? It’s the collective stress cycles of our friends and family kicking into overdrive. The holidays are here, and we all have to somehow make it to January 2nd without body bags, divorces or involuntary commitment to a room with soft walls…
“Revelation comes to those who are radically hospitable to what they do not know. The choice to take the next step is an act of holy curiosity. It could also be called an act of faith. To those who act on faith, to those who move in the midst of mystery and silence, even when…