Category: Personal Connectedness

(*Trigger warning: gun violence*) Today—May 1, 2020—is an interesting day for me, an anniversary of sorts but not one I ever wished to start. A year ago today, one of my hospice patients threatened me at gun point. Although I escaped physically unscathed, I have ...

Please note: I recognize there are several religious holidays celebrated at this time of year (and throughout the year), and I similarly recognize Religious Nones come from a variety of religiours backgrounds. However, I have chosen to focus this post solely on the Christmas holiday ...

This morning, as I was cleaning the bathroom, I was reminded that cultivating our spiritual health does not always require spiritually-dedicated activities like prayer or meditation, nor extraordinary experiences like going on a pilgrimage or attending a week-long silent retreat. Rather, with awareness and a ...

When was the last time you made a greeting card? Have you ever? Growing up, my brother and I always made our cards. Just a piece of construction paper and/or printed photo plus some felt-pens—a few minutes later we had a card! Then as an ...

Box Breathing is a spiritual tool I first discovered in the book, Rising Strong by Brené Brown. It can calm the fight or flight response, aid emotional regulation (particularly around anxiety and stress), and center us in the present moment. I personally use it as ...

It turns out, doing a masters degree at Harvard is a lot of work! Not only has it been difficult to write regular blog posts, but it has also been difficult to prioritize practicing what I “preach.” As I study for days on end, I ...

This semester, I had the pleasure of taking the Harvard Divinity School course, Bridges to JustPeace: Understanding Fragmentation, Inspiring Empathy, and Building Coalitions for a Just and Peaceful Future. The professor, Diane Moore—head of the Religious Literacy Project—created the course in response to the recent ...

Happy belated Valentine’s Day! I thought I would write a quick note about an activity I shared with the Harvard Divinity School community today that centers on…LOVE! ...

My favorite season is upon us! Leaves are preparing for their colorful flight, pumpkin spice lattes are in high demand, and there is a crispness to the air that invigorates my spirit and warms my heart. Not only does autumn bring a multitude of holidays—especially ...

I don’t know about you, but I am feeling exhausted from the recent onslaught of human-caused tragedy. On Friday I learned that flags in the United States had been half-mast for 16 of the last 40 days, starting with the Orlando shooting, and more specifically ...