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Beginner's Heart

I’m still learning this whole ‘retirement’ thing. Don’t get me wrong — it’s GREAT! But when September rolls around, I feel like I should be going back to teaching. But at 9:00 a.m. today — and every weekday —  ‘my’ bus leaves w/out me. When I think about that, I feel… well, not exactly abandoned,…

This thingie is a problem, for scientists. A sedentary, plant-like animal. Cambrian era, so not a really pressing problem. But a good metaphor. I know!  I know! Soooo many things are… So I just learned that there is a whole category of these weird things that don’t fit: problematica. Really. Thingies (that’s what we call…

There is nothing special, really, about these flowers. I grew them in the side garden — roses & sage. Easy, really. They come up every year, like clockwork. Perennials do that. But I never take them for granted. Each spring, when they reappear, it’s a small miracle to me. And each time they rebloom, through…

Labour Day isn’t a Buddhist holiday. 🙂 Although it seems to me to embody something critical to Buddhist thought: respect for our daily work. ‘Right livelihood’ is a basic tenet of Buddhism: that you will harm no one with your work, that you will contribute to society, and that you will grow in awareness. So…

I am a worker bee. Never been a real ‘queen’ of anything (don’t tell my husband & sons — they might disagree). Even when I was a director, I did the trash jobs: paperwork, payroll, receipts and mileage and complaints and… 🙂 I’ve never really been ‘the boss,’ despite what some may think about teachers.…

Today is my nephew’s birthday. We’re all going out to dinner. And although only a couple of us are involved in that decision, it’s taken HOURS. Which leads me to: Why are human beings so weird?? There were only TWO suggestions, both local & non-chains. One Mexican, one Asian fusion. Both nice.  But here’s the…

It seems almost a sacrilege to write anything about the “I Have a Dream’ speech. What is more compelling? I’ve used that speech so many times to teach writing, to teach how to marry passion and political practicality. My students have memorised it. I’ve internalised it. And now, 50 years later, we need it more…

This is what you see when you leave home: familiar scenes (twilight, for instance) with new eyes. Because everything old is new again, on the road. It’s trite, I know. But when I travel, everything — even pizza, which I normally don’t much care for! — is new, and made wonderful with that newness. And…

This is what corporations ought to be like. As an engaged Buddhist, I know that often how I spend my $$ is my best  ‘vote’ for social justice. For corporate responsibility. And believe me: if we had a Costco in Tulsa, I’d be there often! 🙂 Here’s the story of Matthew Horst, a handsome Costco…

Staying with my son & DIL means a smaller bed. And believe me, my beloved & I have not shrunk to fit. We’re used to a king-sized bed in deeply air-conditioned comfort. Here we have an attic fan and closer quarters. Which isn’t all bad, but is certainly… closer. 🙂 Except that my husband tends…
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