“Urkel is dead and I can’t breathe.” Those were the words Oprah spoke to the interviewer when they asked her about one of the most recent casualties of a senseless shooting. I couldn’t breathe either. How could Urkel be gone? He held the hopes of so many of us. He had achieved the dream and … More Communicating to Death (or some better title)
I might be going through a midlife crisis (MLC). A word that etymologically means, “the point at which change must come, for better or worse.” I remember that whenever I heard about MLCs growing up, I thought that whatever it was, it would never happen to me because the way MLCs are typically characterized, it … More There is No Competition
As I prepared my sermon for this Palm Sunday, I felt this sinking feeling. At first, I couldn’t figure out what it was. The truth is I’ve never been a holidays person. Even as a child I asked, “Do we have to do this Christmas thing every year. Actually, I get anxious during almost every … More Breaking Through Before Breaking Free
Tonight I realized that I feel safer in cars that look like I can afford them. That is a sad awareness that I need to work on more deeply. How I realized this was that I had to rent a car. I had a coupon that enabled me to get a compact for the same … More Escaping the Prison Industrial Mindset
If the nations of this world all die eventually, I imagine the official cause of death would be from complications due to the identity struggles of their citizenry. I get no pleasure out of making that statement, but I cannot ignore that, as far as I can tell, the divided world seems to be in … More Developing A Sense of True Identity
Dear Red Hats, I’m sorry. What can I say? There’s no excuse. I must confess. I’m a hatist. Confession is the first step on the road to redemption and I need to be redeemed. My understanding of my Spiritual discipline (Christianity), which many who wear you also profess, teaches that there is no fear in … More An Open Letter to Red Hats
About 6 years ago a friend I went to seminary with passed away unexpectedly. Steven was a book lover and so his family decided to have a book give away at the school. At first it felt kind of strange picking through his books, but in a way it felt like if I read some … More Waiting for Anthony Robbins
Typically I wouldn’t call myself an elitist. As far as I can tell, on the surface I don’t have any reason to be. But the other day I had an experience where I felt the sense that I was infected by the mentality despite my sincere efforts to discipline my thoughts and acts in the … More Can You Spare a Little Change?
On November 15, 2016, a week after the election of DJT, two friends and I facilitated a mindfulness meditation on dismantling racism that we called, “Peeking Through the Blinds”. Kara Dansky, of One Thousand Arms led us through the meditations and Brian Rocheleau (aka Rosh), of The Blind Cafe, provided the music. I set up … More Rise and Shine: Dispel the Darkness By Being the Light
Don’t let the title of this post fool you. If you’re thrown off by this image and the title then chances are you have never heard of the show from the early 2000s based on the life of comedian Chris Rock as a teenager. The show was entitled “Everybody Hates Chris” and chronicled the awkward misadventures of young Chris as he navigated the challenges of growing up and trying to find his place in the world. … More Everybody Hates Christians
