Standing for Justice and Empathy with Humility

In the delicate balance between standing for justice and promoting empathy, I struggle with how to hold these two together simultaneously.  At the heart of this challenge for me is the recognition that when calling out (or “calling in,” as it’s now said) what I see as an injustice, it’s easy to fall into promoting…

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Our Way Out of Hell

Have you ever prioritized your own needs over someone else’s? Have you noticed there was a cost to doing so? I have been pondering over this as I witness events in Israel-Palestine. I desire to get to the core of what is happening and extract the needed lessons for myself and civilization. Join me in…

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No Bad Parts – In the Violence of Our World

No Bad Parts is the title of one of Richard Schwartz’s latest books on Internal Family Systems (IFS), an approach to trauma healing. In the IFS model, inner “parts” of our psyche take on more extreme beliefs and roles in order to keep our system safe, particularly to protect other hurt parts that have been…

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Empathic Understanding in War — A Revolutionary Act For Peace

The violence and suffering happening in Israel-Palestine is excruciating to witness. I can only imagine how truly horrific and unbearable of an experience it is for those living there. So much is being written and spoken about what’s happening. What can I possibly add to the conversation that could be helpful? There is talk about…

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Navigating Conflict and the Hero/Heroine’s Journey

It’s so interesting to me how what’s new builds on what has been, but in unseen ways. I see now how what is emerging in me about what is needed in the world has been growing and developing since early in my life and in the early roots with Nonviolent Communication and Mediate Your Life…

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Holding Paradox to Bridge Our Differences

Bridging our differences is, I believe, what we humans now need to do to survive and support the flourishing of Earth, yet it seems impossibly out of reach. We may think we need to choose between pessimism or optimism, but why not be both? What happens if we hold the paradox? There is much to…

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MLK, Nonviolence, and Communication

Today in the U.S. is the holy-day each year we celebrate and honor the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., his nonviolent approach to social change calling society towards the soaring ideals enshrined in the U.S. Declaration of Independence of freedom and equality for all. Dr. King was a tremendous light shining out…

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Fear and Trust Facing the Year Ahead

At the boundary between 2021 and 2022, looking out over the future landscape of the coming year, I see conflict, violence and suffering growing and spreading in the world, And I also see, at the heart of the dissolution, a tremendous light getting brighter and brighter, brilliant and beautiful. Sharing with a dear friend and…

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Becoming Regenerative

I am feeling deeply inspired by the regeneration movement. Paul Hawken, an environmental activist for many decades and one the leading voices in this movement, has written a new book called Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation. The movement as I understand it is about not only living sustainably on the planet but…

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Inoculation For Outrage

This weekend was the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attack on the U.S.. Thinking of 9/11 reminds Americans of the trauma of that day and entering into the “War on Terror.” It can remind us also of the daily trauma and terror of the staggering amounts of violence and human-generated suffering still happening around…

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