I remember well my first day of grad school. I was awake early. It surprised me how concerned I suddenly was about what I should wear. (“You should have thought of this before!” I kept telling myself.) I finally settled…
Category: Opportunity
2 Famous Fear-Be-Gone Moments
A look at two famous big-breaks, and the nervous people who stepped up to make them happen. I often hear people say things like, “Oh I could never do that. I’d be too nervous.” Or “I am too scared that…
“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…
“Music in the Dark” (A 2-minute read.)
From my African journal: Every evening, I hear music coming from an obscure location in the middle of my village town, Masaka, Uganda. It is joyful music with heavy rhythms and multiple voices in song. Between choruses, there are great…
“Unexpected Ways” (An 80-second reading on what I am enjoying most about this human experience.)
Early this morning I was seated in the lobby of one of Kampala’s oldest hotels, The Africana. The Senior Advisor to Uganda’s First Lady had asked to meet me there. We have been friends for many years, and I happened…
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…
4 Things I’m Glad I Don’t Know for Sure
For years, on the last page of the ‘O’ magazine, Oprah Winfrey has written a column she calls: “What I know for sure.” Today, I’m doing just the opposite. In a reading for my “Spirituality and Health” class, I highlighted this phrase: “Prior…
“Especially Set Aside” (An 80-second reading on creating space for conversations that matter.)
The music is pumped up on the car radio, you’re driving to a somewhat familiar place, but then suddenly you realize you’re lost. What’s the first thing you do? You turn down your radio. Why? Because you need to create…
“In a Taxi that Runs Red Lights” (A 50-second reading on a life without rules)
A man arrives in a new country, and hails a taxi at the airport. Not long into the journey, the driver runs a red light. “Excuse me, but you just ran a red light!” the passenger says. “Oh, don’t worry…