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I'm a writer and creative director. I make things, collect books, write fiction and don't understand Zen. I'm Vegan.

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Pizza or Vegan? A New Post Over At Elephant Journal

I’ve got a new post over at Elephant Journal about my struggle with giving up pizza. It’s my one big, cheesy, saucy, yummy hurdle on the road to being Vegan.

Here’s an excerpt:

I’ve been vegetarian for a couple of years now. I slowly let a vast array of meats fall away as I settled nicely into the very comfortable dairy and eggs only category (octo-lavo-something or other, right?). That was fine for a while. But alas, I now feel a tug toward the next step and find myself faced with the toughest food choice ever: Vegan or pizza?

A Beautiful Video: Bells of Mindfulness

Sister Dang Nghiem, a nun at Deer Park Monastery, discusses the mindfulness bell, cultivating peacefulness and joy.

This is a beautiful and really well shot video.

(Via Patrick Burke at Vimeo)

The Luster of Lack

Check out this article I wrote for Elephant Journal on the Buddhist notion of dukkha, the sense of lack and our collective obsession with buying and having stuff.

Here’s an excerpt:

With all due respect to René Descartes, I think a more accurate characterization of the modern human condition is not his famous, “I think therefore I am,” but rather “I lack therefore I am.” Who we are, or who we think we are, has become inextricably linked to the things we buy and the brands we affiliate with as what we project outward into society is reflected back to us as a form of self validation. This is how we really know who we are.

As a result, we’ve become a society obsessed with stuff. We buy stuff, we buy more stuff and then when we run out of room for the stuff we have, we rent space so we can store the extra stuff. As a result, Self Storage has become one of the fastest growing industries in the United States.

Happy reading.

Happy Buddha Day

May 27th – the day of the first full moon in May – is Buddha Day, a day celebrating his enlightenment after sitting in meditation under the Bodhi tree.

So let’s all practice mindfulness today. Let’s observe a little silence. And, let’s remember to be compassionate and kind.

For a few rituals and observances and other great insights, check out this great post over at Elephant Journal.

bedside

Preparation Is Overrated

I heard a term recently that struck me. In a podcast by Gil Fronsdal, primary teacher at the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California, he referred to a phenomenon in the spiritual publishing industry known as Bed Stand Buddhists. It seems that there is a sizable number of people out there who love to read about Buddhism, who love the way the literature, whether it’s one of the Sutras or contemporary writings, makes them feel. There is a sense of peace found in the writings, but this is as far as they go. Bed Stand Buddhists never take the big next step which is from bed to cushion.

Maybe the reason this struck me so much is that I am desperate to apply and actively engage in my practice – both on the yoga mat and on the cushion with my meditation practice. However, I love books, love the intellectual challenges of philosophy and various spiritual writings and if I’m not vigilant about things I could easily succumb to the lure of purely intellectual exercises at the expense of what matters most: engaged practice.