Animals are nothing but the forms of our virtues and vices, wandering before our eyes, the visible phantoms of our souls. ~ Victor Hugo Men used to listen attentively to the messages of the animals; our lives, our souls, depended on it. The appearances and absences of certain animals at certain times were full of […]
Conflict
“In fact, the conflict itself is creative and perhaps should never be healed.” ~ Thomas Moore Very often men seek to remove conflict. At times that’s the best move to make. But hoping for an end to all conflict is unrealistic. Conflict is natural; it’s part of living in community rather than isolation. When conflict […]
The Perfection of Imperfection
Baseball … teaches that errors are part of the game. ~ Ernest Kurtz Some of us, long ago, learned that anything less than perfection was failure. We learned this in our families, at school, from coaches. Some of us had “four A, one B” parents: we handed them our report card, they looked silently at […]
Seeking the Truth
If you tell the truth, you have infinite power supporting you; but if not, you have infinite power against you. ~ Charles Gordon I’m a man who has told lies and lived lies and listened to the lies of other men. Lying is what I was taught to do. I was told that if it […]
Self-Esteem
“A man falling in his own esteem needs more ground under his feet; to stand again he may need the whole world for a foothold.” ~ Wendell Berry So many men try to live up to the expectations and visions of others (as our fathers did) by acquiring land and things, even by “collecting” people! […]
Search for the Sword
Though much is taken, much abides; … that which we are, we are, One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. ~ Alfred, Lord Tennyson Most of us received no sword from our fathers. Instead we inherited […]
Returning the Earth
“We have conquered the environment, and in our obsession for control, we no longer allow the environment to live in us.” ~ Valerie Andrews Humankind has “tamed” the wilderness, bought and sold land for profit and loss. For too long we have mortgaged the earth and bankrupted its resources, pouring fumes into the skies and […]
Retrieving Dreams
Imagination is more important than knowledge. ~ Albert Einstein If we believe that our dream life is at least as important as our waking life, what wonders might occur. Intuition is as real and dependable as anything that can be scientifically observed. We know from experience that we become what we imagine. We don’t just […]
Empowerment
The power of a man … is his present means to obtain some future apparent good. ~ Thomas Hobbes Many of us have lived for power, often getting it at a very high cost to ourselves and the people we love. In such cases, we seldom feel empowered by our actions. Nor do we feel […]
Where is the Treasure?
If there is to be any peace it will come through being, not having. ~ Henry Miller As boys, many of us learned that having a lot of toys brought popularity. As teenagers, whoever had the first car was the center of attention. If we had more clothes, money, and athletic ability, we had more […]
Fire
The voice at the center speaks in tongues of flame … The child in man hears his fire rise. ~ M. C. Richards The author of the quotation above, M. C. Richards, is a potter. Fire is at the center of her art, as it is at the center of much art – indeed, of […]
A Wordless Language
Nature is one of the languages God speaks. ~ Robert Bly Many men have dabbled in, even mastered, languages. We speak fluent English, manage German “ein bischen,” use a peso’s worth of Spanish, murmur French when we feel amorous. We understand well the language of commerce, of industry. We’re plainspoken about stocks and bonds. We […]
Deep Respect
Our capacity for intimacy is built on deep respect, a presence that allows what is true to express itself, to be discovered. ~ Jack Kornfield Respect can connect humans at the deepest level. Love that is based on respect – rather than need or longing – is more enduring. Such respect can tolerate great differences. […]
Earth, the Great Teacher
Speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee. ~ Job 12:8 So many men have been brainwashed into believing that the Earth is not alive, that it possesses no character, no feeling, and that it’s merely here to serve the insatiable demands of a greedy few. As we recover from this soul-shattering falsehood, a new […]
A Quiet Strength
“A thoughtful book like this encourages contemplation, rather than hyperactivity, and, oddly, we need good words in order to find fruitful silence.” ~ Thomas Moore – Care of the Soul Who will mentor, teach, and touch the souls of the boys who have been bullied, bloodied and beaten literally or figuratively? Each day from now […]