Ch. 6. Mindful Living

  • On Authenticity and Taking Things Personally

    If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended, That you have but slumber’d here While these visions did appear. I’ve been having some rather candid conversations with fellow writers and non-writers in Towson and around town about the importance of authentic writing, both in polished pieces that we submit for publication…

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  • My Friend Is Depressed: What Can I Do?

    One of the most common questions we are asked at Lines of Love is, “My friend is depressed and I don’t know what to do. How can I help?” The answer is pretty simple, but we can get overwhelmed with presumed responsibility of taking care of everything, and immediately. We look for the instant fix…

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  • The Child At My Door

    The Child At My Door

    It was a late November night, And I was just about done. The stacks of papers that I needed to grade Had, in some small way, dwindled down to none. I lifted the stained red cup from my desk And finished the cold coffee poured hours before; I reached for the lamp signed by students…

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  • Compassion: Let Us All Begin Here

    The dust is beginning to settle following the attacks in Paris, as moments of shock have turned to hours and days of grief and contemplation. Our disbelief has turned to a variety of emotions: sadness, frustration, and even anger. In the aftermath we are caught between the struggle to do something meaningful and to return…

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  • There Is Always A Clearing

    There Is Always A Clearing

    There Is Always A Clearing. There is always a clearing. I discovered this long after you had passed, Where, in the absence of light I imagined the night Opening its pitch-black door just right– ajar For eyes like mine that yearned for hope, promise, Love. And there you were — are still to this same…

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  • 14 Hours In Light: Part 6. The Final Ascent and Facing The Final Fear

    Part 6. The Final Ascent and Facing The Final Fear Braeden decides to join us at the last minute, and he and Madelyn lead the way to the top of the hill. Their energy is boundless, and Rob and I take our time making the steep climb. The sun still seems high in the sky,…

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  • 14 Hours In Light: Part 5. The Descent and The Energy Within

    14 Hours In Light: Part 5. The Descent and The Energy Within Once the sun had cleared the mountain, I take one more walk around the perimeter of the summit before heading back to the cabin. The walk down the mountain is, at worst, in shadow. Gone are the fears about bears, injuries, or communication…

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  • 14 Hours In Light: Part 4. The Rising Sun, The Falling Moon, and The Epiphany

    Part 4. The Rising Sun, The Falling Moon, and The Epiphany These seven minutes I spend on the summit of Big Bald Mountain, waiting for the sun’s first sliver to slip over the eastern mountains beyond Little Bald are, perhaps, the most powerful of my life. Within the first minute of standing between the falling…

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  • 14 Hours in Light: Part 3. The Summit and The Elements

    Part 3. The Summit and The Elements Hiking up the last 1,000 feet to the summit of Big Bald is much like navigating a natural obstacle course – a few switchbacks, yes. But each stretch has its own challenge, the most difficult ones (thank goodness) are in the beginning of the final ascent. As much…

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  • 14 Hours in Light: Part 2. The Ascent and The Fear of Wildlife

    The night is still too much with me as I cross the final gate on this fire road and continue another quarter-mile to the trail head. The moon – one rise shy of being the second full (blue) moon in July – is still the sky’s main attraction. It hangs heavy over the pines and…

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