Recently I was in a “creative companioning” session with a woman I’ll call Suzanne. Companioning is a paid service I provide, helping individuals explore and catalyze their creative life. As a client identifies his or…
Phyllis Cole-DaiMay 16, 2022
Note: This past Sunday, many people in the U.S. observed Mother’s Day. I wrote my mother an acrostic poem for the occasion. In an acrostic poem, certain letters in each line (typically the first letters) spell…
Phyllis Cole-DaiMay 9, 2022
Note: In our last edition of Staying Power, I told a story about how stars had come to be in the night sky. In response, a reader asked me how the daytime sky had come…
Phyllis Cole-DaiApril 29, 2022
This is my version of a story I first heard from Laura Packer. I keep retelling it in different settings, because the world keeps needing to hear it. In the beginning, there was only light…
Phyllis Cole-DaiApril 18, 2022
Spanish-American chef José Andrés and his nonprofit World Central Kitchen have been on the ground in Ukraine and neighboring countries since war broke out on February 24. They work with partner restaurants, community kitchens, and…
Phyllis Cole-DaiApril 10, 2022
Here’s a dirty little secret: Our house has a beautiful baby grand piano, and it scarcely gets played. That’s on me. I’m the lone pianist living here. Want to know why I don’t play? Read…
Phyllis Cole-DaiApril 4, 2022
I've been out of studio this week. No worries, I'm fully recovered from last week's kidney stone attack (thanks for your well wishes). But with Jihong's university on spring break, we've headed for the hills—the Black…
Phyllis Cole-DaiMarch 21, 2022
Shortly after midnight, I’m wakened by severe spasms in my belly and gnawing pain in my lower back. Almost at once I recognize the symptoms: kidney stones. I’ve experienced such an attack before. Passing big…
Phyllis Cole-DaiMarch 14, 2022
Mike the plumber was at our house last week, replacing a couple of old hot-water radiators. One morning, I asked him to pause his work and step into our main bathroom. “You smell sewer gas…
Phyllis Cole-DaiMarch 10, 2022
Lemon tree, very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet But the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat … Do you remember this folk song about disappointed love? So much hinges…
Phyllis Cole-DaiFebruary 21, 2022
Here I am, on retreat again. One year has elapsed since the Muse woke me up on retreat in San Diego, delivering For the Sake of One We Love and Are Losing. At the time, I…
Phyllis Cole-DaiFebruary 14, 2022
By the time you read this, I’ll be immersed in my annual mid-winter writing retreat. Eleven days of solitary work near San Diego, California. (Think: Sunny. Balmy. Green. Oceanside. Think: Not winter in South Dakota!)…
Phyllis Cole-DaiFebruary 7, 2022
