I grieve the horrific mass shootings that occurred while I was recently out of studio. Had I been at home instead of traveling, I’d have offered you a timely word instead of material scheduled in…
A brief roundup for May, as I'm currently out of studio, traveling with Jihong and Nathan. We're on a whirlwind roadtrip to North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Once we get back to South Dakota,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…