Living The Resistance as The Embracing
In a notebook of ideas that stays open on my desk, I wrote sometime in the last few weeks, “What if the movement changed its language from “resistance” to “expansiveness” … Read More
Wooly Eyes and Bright Illumination
July 6, 2020
by
Sarah B
From the start of the pandemic (or really, our attention to it here in the States), I’ve been fascinated by how it’s worked as a sort of highlighter or illuminator. … Read More
The (Optional) Snap of the Band
June 22, 2020
by
Sarah B
You might imagine a rubber band. You might imagine a rubber band with two lines on opposite points of it circumference. You might imagine one line represents a feeling … Read More
The Problem with Helping
June 15, 2020
by
Sarah B
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people … Read More
When the Doing Follows the Being
June 8, 2020
by
Sarah B
I’ve been in the midst of a very slow-rolling project of scanning and organizing all of my photographs for some time now. During a recent dive into a folder, I … Read More
An Open Letter to My Fellow White Americans
June 1, 2020
by
Sarah B
Dear Fellow White Americans: On Saturday, I read an article in the Roanoke Times about a man, Walker Sigler, who was shot in his home by police in 2018. … Read More
Raising the Dialogue, Part 3: When Do I Get to Talk?
May 25, 2020
by
Sarah B
A wee sentence tucked into each of my last two posts, each alluding to the need to address problematic words and behaviors, deserves a little attention today. This is where … Read More
Raising the Dialogue, Part 2: Listening for the Big Lessons
May 18, 2020
by
Sarah B
Last week, I wrote about listening past others’ challenging words as though it’s easy, a switch to flip. “Ah, yes, now I hear the humanness beneath the reactivity. Jolly good!” … Read More
Raising the Dialogue, Part 1: Listening Past Words
May 11, 2020
by
Sarah B
For some time now, it’s felt to many of us as though public dialogue has devolved into different sides shielding themselves behind stone walls while lobbing opinions at one another. … Read More
Shooting for the Highest Common Denominator
May 4, 2020
by
Sarah B
In 2005, Buddhist teacher Pema Chödrön and Alice Walker – best known as the author of The Color Purple, less known for her lifelong, intensive, skin-in-the-game social justice activism – … Read More