Date Archives May 2022

In the practice of aikido, a form of martial arts intended only for defense and never for aggression, the practitioner begins their training with a white belt. Over time and through endless hours of practice, the belt becomes dirty and worn. It is said in this way the practitioner gains their black belt. At the level of black belt, the movements of aikido become nearly invisible. The aikido practitioner becomes an elegant, balancing force to the opposing force. It looks like a scuffle to the novice’s eyes, but it is… Read More

In her book, No Cure For Being Human, author, and professor Kate Bowler tells a story of the day she attended a departmental meeting out of sheer boredom. She was fighting cancer, and her prognosis was not good. But still, she spent some of her precious time left attending a boring departmental meeting.  She tried to explain this to her friend Warren. She says, “‘I have given up on the future.’  After a long pause, he asks, ‘Would you agree that true happiness is the ability to enjoy the present… Read More

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.  The other is good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.” The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?” The old Cherokee replied,… Read More

Ashley Nicole Black said, “There is a particular slap in the face of being told we can vote for abortion rights by the court that gutted voting rights.” She has a point.