“I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain.” – James Baldwin Yes, we cling to our hates. We also cling to arrogance and selfishness. We cling to certainty and control. We cling to unhealthyContinue reading “For Dear Life”
Tag Archives: pain
Standing in the Tragic Gap
“By the tragic gap I mean the gap between the hard realities around us and what we know is possible — not because we wish it were so, but because we’ve seen it with our own eyes.” —Parker J. Palmer This week, more destruction, loss and pain. More reminders of the frailty of the human condition, ofContinue reading “Standing in the Tragic Gap”
Do the Work
“If we do not transform our pain we will most certainly transmit it.” – Richard Rohr There’s a line from the poem “Out on the Ocean” by David Whyte that conveys Rohr’s meaning with visceral urgency: “Always this energy smoulders inside, when it remains unlit the body fills with dense smoke.” That unlit energy isContinue reading “Do the Work”
Eat Your Vegetables
I learned recently that a particular sequence of stretching and strengthening exercises would alleviate the pain in my hip. The entire sequence of exercises, done well, takes about seven minutes. When I do them the pain subsides. When I don’t do them the pain remains. Some days I choose not to do them. What aContinue reading “Eat Your Vegetables”
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