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Do you ever describe yourself as “spiritual, but not religious?” I actually don’t since my personal faith leaves room for a lot of doubt. I don’t reject religious affiliation by insisting that I’m merely a “spiritual” person. I can stay interested in dogma, but still not subscribe to it. Anyone else have this kind of…

I found this prayer by Christine Robinson on the Unitarian Universalist Association’s website today and thought some of you might be able to adapt it for use with family and friends this week. An excerpt: Like the harried innkeeper, may we find ways to help others. Like the lumbering beasts, may we be silent witnesses…

A recent Third Age newsletter discusses the medicinal impact of common spices, citing Victoria Zak’s book “The Magic Teaspoon.” For instance: * A diet rich in cayenne-spiced chili can protect against the formation of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. * When you add a teaspoon of cinnamon to contaminated apple juice, the E. coli can be reduced…

I know soy messes with estrogen, but this strikes me as extreme. Here’s the conservative Jim Rutz writing for World Net Daily, revving readers up to eat less soy: Soy is feminizing, and commonly leads to a decrease in the size of the to a decrease in the size of the penis, sexual confusion and…

It’s not a new album (in fact, the responsible folk artist Bill Crofut died in 1999), but “Dance on a Moonbeam” is so beloved by me and my children that I want to turn you on to it anyway. It’s not mandatory for Christmas, but it will provide any parent with lovely, heart-opening music for…

These guys make me feel so joyous. But in cute (and reasonably accurate) poses like down dog, plow, and warrior two, how could anyone ever bite into them? I send heartfelt thanks to Patty Paige Baked Ideas in New York for inventing them. Here are their other December holiday cookie styles (for at-home decorating inspiration),…

Another 2006 innovation: Traditional Christmas music channeled through African percussive instruments. No lyrics, just carols made tropical. The effect is truly relaxing and highly unusual.

You may know Ellen Burstyn as an actor, the kind of natural performer who isn’t self conscious, but did you also know she’s a deeply spiritual person with a passion for Sufism? Read Valerie Reiss’s interview with Burstyn here. An excerpt: “I try and have the first words out of my mouth everyday be ‘thank…

I’m attending a birthday party next week in a shoe-free home. The invitation warns all guests of this in advance, and has playfully suggested that we come in “clean socks!” Of course, I have no problem with this, but I’m wondering what you guys think. A lot of people ask guests to remove their shoes…

Here’s a hugely important article by Congressional Quarterly’s Jeff Stein. It reveals the sorry truth that government officials of both parties don’t always know who’s who and what’s what in the Arab world. Five years post-9/11, it’s everyone’s personal responsibility to study Middle Eastern history and bone up on its religious conflicits.
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