V is for vegan
"The animals of the world exist for their own reasons, they were not created for men anymore than black people were created for whites or women for men." -Alice Walker In 2008, I will transition to a vegan diet. My goal is to live a more cruelty-free life by eliminating …
W is for wellness
“The concept of total wellness recognizes that our every thought, word, and behavior affects our greater health and well-being. And we, in turn, are affected not only emotionally but also physically and spiritually.” – Greg Anderson In 2008, I want to focus on wellness, not weight. I’m tired of “America’s …
Voice mail
Um. I’m a grown woman. I’ve done things in my life, traveled the world, written books, birthed two babies, married Mr Brilliant, learned how to play bass clarinet and oboe and bassoon, escorted the first woman on the PRC Central Committee around the U.S. for a month, built gingerbread castles …
X is for xenagogue
“I do desire we be better strangers.” – William Shakespeare I want to be a better stranger in 2008. My thanks to all who sent suggestions for X, the bane of any alphabetic journey. Thanks to Leah who suggested xenagogue (guide; someone who conducts strangers), xenial (of or concerning hospitality …
Yearning in art
Jillian offers this marvelous photograph as her rendition of yearning: "When I read your blog this morning, about Yearning, I immediately thought of this photo I had hanging on my wall. I took it on a camping trip in Maine about 22 years ago or so." Such a spectacular way …
Y is for yearning
“We are the yearning creatures of this planet.” –Robert Olen Butler In 2008, I want to explore my deepest yearnings. Life is yearning meeting obstacle. Perhaps, as Randy Pausch told us, “brick walls are there for a reason. They let us prove how badly we want things." Brick walls are, …
Zwischenraum in art
Two intrepid artists have evidently finished making all their holiday gifts, brewing their vegan egg nog from scratch, and creating lovingly handcrafted gingerbread versions of Frank Lloyd Wright homes (to scale), leaving them with spare time to send in their interpretations of Zwischenraum, the space between. From Ellouise Schoettler: "The …
Z is for Zwischenraum
"True places are not found on maps." -Herman Melville I want to live in the space between in 2008. I want to mind the gap and let go of the monkey bars, live in liminal space, the ecotone, the “intérieur,” the threshold and the fold. I want to move heartily …
Thanks for the music
I mentioned Bobby Sherman at a dinner party the other night and was met with blank stares. It comes from spending time with young ‘uns, but you know who Bobby Sherman is, don’t you? Perhaps if I mentioned listening to Dan Fogelberg in my younger years, I’d get the same …
Z to A: Winding down the year, winding up a new one
"Why is the alphabet in that order? Is it because of that song? The guy who wrote that song wrote everything." -Stephen Wright Earlier, we traveled from A to Z. Let’s go back to A again, shall we, in honor of Ellouise’s sister Lynda who believed her second grade teacher …
