Sanctuary

When I was nineteen, I spent a lot of time with Duncan Philips. At my college, which was known for its preponderance of black clothing and lesbians, a course in economics was going to be Economics of the Arts. And I was going to study patronage, a subject I knew about only so far as […]

Personification

We do this project. The kids write about a problem they have overcome, creating a symbol to personify that problem so that they think of resolving the situation in a healthy way, in an assertive, active way. So I go around the room to see what they are going to write about. Deaths of […]

End of the Line

Lent is almost over. My practice: daily meditation and daily stretching (physical), daily flossing, daily Lent-specific reading. And facebook only once a day, instead of whenever I get bored. This resulted in me obsessively checking my email instead, to scratch the itch for distraction. Monkey mind is powerful. St. Benedict emphasizes socialization and moderation of […]

Family

Okay, Washington, DC is a political place. Still, I was surprised when the woman next to me snapped. “Those are for families,” the lady behind the desk said. She meant a particular brochure. I was picking up a map, and happened to witness the exchange. “We’re a family,” Snappy responded. “I mean, families with children,” […]