Dirda in Threes
RULE TWO: General duties of a student — pull everything out of your teacher; pull everything out of your fellow students. —Sister Corita Kent Michael Dirda, Readings: Essays and Literary Entertainments Indiana University Press, 2000…
Author: Mark J. Chmiel
Continuation via Chris Wallach
From Thich Nhat Hanh– One autumn day, I was in a park, absorbed in the contemplation of a very small but beautiful leaf, in the shape of a heart. Its color was almost red, and…
Dear Teacher by Yael DiPlacido-Eastman
I once asked Jean Abbott what made her choose the path that she chose in life. Her answer became a guiding principle in my life. She said that she was raised to believe (I believe…
Share the Wealth: With Gratitude for Jean Abbott
I invite you to join us for an evening of sharing stories about Sister Jean Abbott (1943-2021), who was the founder of the Center for Survivors of Torture and War Trauma here in Saint Louis….
The Mutation of Vision
Pierre Hadot, What is Ancient Philosophy? Translated by Michael Chase My friend Pat and I have been reading and discussing via Zoom works by French philosopher Pierre Hadot since this past summer. Having previously read…
History from a New Perspective
Dorothee Soelle, Against the Wind: Memoir of a Radical Christian A series of short 3-6 page chapters proceeding chronologically from growing up in Germany, through the war years, to her education, her intellectual influences, especially, existentialism;…
Share the Wealth with Annie Cosby … When Writing’s The Easy Part: Lessons from Writing, Publishing & Loving Novels
Writing is difficult. Really, really difficult. Growing up, I always thought that would be the hardest part of my dream of becoming an author. Actually finishing a book, a book people would want to read,…
Seeing and Being Seen
Suddenly I realized that [Maharaji] knew everything that was going on in my head, all the time, and that he still loved me. Because who we are is behind all that. —Ram Dass [Sri…
A Note from Long Ago
Mev’s The Struggle Is One was published in the summer of 1994, some months after her glioblastoma surgery.
With Unswerving Steadfastness
Swami Prabhavananda, The Eternal Companion: Brahmananda—His Life and Teachings A while back, through reading the spiritual works of Christopher Isherwood, I became acquainted with his guru, Swami Prabhavananda, who was a devotee of Brahmananda,…