Category: Active Compassion

  • Do you ever just want to quit? (A Good Friday reflection)

    Do you ever just want to quit? I do.  Sometimes.  Not often. But sometimes I do. Today, Good Friday, I reflect on what it might mean to “quit” in the face of purpose, valuable sacrifice, and eternal changemaking. I believe that we have been given a great example which we are invited to humbly Read…

  • It hasn’t been done before. (Really?)

    There seems to be something inherent to humanity—at least to current humans—that makes us want to believe that our efforts are unique, unequaled, and unmatched. Several years ago, I was contacted by a British group that wanted to help children living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.  They asked if I Read more […]

  • For those whose world will end today

    In the silly, wrongly interpreted hype about a Mayan celebration of the passage of time, I think it is very important that we not lose sight of those who are in need of our active compassion. I am mindful of the many people for whom the world will end today.  People who will lose their…

  • 4 things my mom has taught me about mothering

    1.  It’s extremely hard, but most of us are capable of it.  My mom has taught me that the act of mothering is perhaps THE greatest challenge—and THE greatest gift—of this human experience.  She also taught me to fully reject the social construction of the Western world that says that nurturing Read more […]

  • “25 Things I’m Grateful for!” (My monthly gratitude list.)

    Emails from my kids. After the long journey from Uganda, I walked into my American office on Monday and found a delightful gift and card from a colleague whose last day of work had been whilst I was away. That spiritual connections remain even when our human experiences take different routes. Electricity!  Read more […]

  • “Let’s Climb Out of the Bucket” (My reflections on ‘Kony 2012’)

    My dad often tells a story about what it means to be a crabber (someone who catches crabs).  The crabbers place their catches, one by one, into a bucket.  Eventually, the bucket is full enough for some crabs to have the opportunity to stretch their claws to the rim of the bucket, and escape.  But…

  • I answer the Q: What does “compassion without borders” mean to me?

    Below is an essay that won a competition in celebration of a visit to my university by His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.  It was printed in a booklet, and gifted to His Holiness.  We had been challenged to answer (in 500 words or less) this question: “What does ‘compassion-without-borders’ mean to you?” Read more […]

  • Don’t just do something, stand there. (A 1-minute reading.)

    One of my first kids was initially brought to AidChild covered in wounds—the beating kind.  Nearly every inch of his little body had been abused.  We don’t know his date of birth, but he must have been six or seven years old.  It was truly awful. Like all of my kids, he quickly rebounded, and…

  • “Hello, TOO!” (A 90-second reading.)

    Years ago, I worked for the President of the Arizona Board of Regents.  My office was in his law suite, along with his law partners and the lobbyists who worked for his firm.  I seemed to often arrive just behind one of the lobbyists, Missy, meaning I was walking several paces behind her from the…

  • “The Power of the Hand-Written Word” (a 50-second reading)

    I sat down in my usual seat in class the other afternoon, and spotted a little envelope with my name on it.  I quickly surmised that it must be a thank-you-note from a colleague.  She and her husband had been to my apartment for dinner last weekend, and the note was a very gleefully-received gesture…