inspiring people

Brené Brown’s Life Changing Question: Do You Believe People Are Doing the Best They Can?

When Brené Brown asked herself, ‘Do you believe people are doing the best they can? ‘ she admits to answering ‘Fuck no!’ until she explored it further, which yielded pure, transformative gold.

Monks Pond, Thomas Merton’s Visionary Underground Magazine Meant “To Go Out of Business”

In the sixties, Trappist monk and mystic Thomas Merton published a magazine with a radical and artful mission. Here are some excerpts…

Oliver Sack’s On Meeting an Orangutan at the Toronto Zoo

One of the most remarkable stories in the late Oliver Sacks’ posthumously published book is about Sacks’ unexpected meeting with an orangutan while visiting the zoo. It describes Sacks “”a brilliant singularity”: his ability for showing us the big fat gifts to be found in the everyday. Perfection in 274 words.

Listen to the Magic of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah Being Hummed Around the World

Among the many joys we experienced at the extraordinary Leonard Cohen exhibition at The Jewish Museum, is a room resonating with the sound of hundreds of people around the world humming Cohen’s anthem, Hallelujah. You can experience it online as well.

Beatrice Wood’s Mistakes “Like Pebbles That Make a Good Road”, with Sculptor Richard Long

When we heard centenarian ceramic artist Beatrice Wood’s extraordinary view of the mistakes she made in life, we thought of the work of artist Richard Long…

How The Tiananmen Tank Man’s Stunning Act Went Way Beyond Courage

Reflecting on the video of an anonymous Chinese man standing up to government tanks that day after the Tiananmen Square Massacre, we finally see that way more than courage is on display.

Vivianne Westwood’s Activist Fashion for Personal Power and Global Change

Martin Parr’s wonderful portrait of the always-inspiring wise-elder activist fashion designer, Vivianne Westwood got us wondering what she was up to. Her ongoing mission is to have people “buy less; dress up”. How you might ask? She tells you here.

Mister Rogers: What is Essential is Invisible to the Eye

We are continually amazed by the late Fred Rogers ability to illuminate aspects of life using just a few words, in his calm, spacious way. Here are two transformative riffs to take into the week.

Opened at Random: The Book of Joy “Setting an Intention for the Day”

Today we opened at random the Book of Joy, Lasting Happiness in a Changing World by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. We found this…

Trisha Brown’s Effortless Flow

This beautiful leap (here, in slow motion video) and a series of lithographs made by legendary dancer and choreographer Trisha Brown embody her unique style she once wryly described as the line of least resistance.

In Memory of W.S Merwin: Life as Spontaneous Poetry

W.S. Merwin, one of the great American poets, passed away on Friday. We found some beauties of poems plus a practice of his that we’re going to try ourselves, in his honor.

Karl Lagerfeld’s Inspired Ideas

After legendary designer Karl Lagerfeld passed away in February, we looked back into our archive for good ideas any of us might steal and employ…

David Hockney and Joni Mitchell Instagram “Opens Up Our Vision to What is Possible”

The New York Times parsed 13 reasons why the instagram of art and music legends David Hockney and Joni Mitchell went viral. We found some other reasons why the image is so powerful…

Thomas Merton’s “Small Message of Hope”

Trappist monk and theologian Thomas Merton addressed the difficulties and rewards of being oneself in the modern world, with heartening words on navigating the way through.

How to Edit Your Life (Werner Herzog)

When guest-contributor David Saltman met filmmaker Werner Herzog, he found him full of amazingly on-point advice…

Martin Luther King, Jr on Resisting Violence to the Spirit

Martin Luther King’s Six Principles of Nonviolence go far beyond political activism and protest. They are a way of life, applicable on even the most personal and private level, Principle Five in particular.

Mary Oliver’s Instructions for Living

In this often dark times, I am grateful for the potent little instructions for living Mary Oliver gave us.

A Charleston Pastor Comforts a Pittsburgh Rabbi and Teaches Us About the Healing Power of Presence

Rev Manning described the Ministry of Presence that became the heart of his church’s mission and teaching after the violence it experienced in 2015. And he showed it in action.

A Cool Teeny Video of the NYC Marathon: Every Step, Every Breath is a Gift

“Every mile is a gift!” proclaimed a handmade sign we saw at mile 22 of the legendary 26-mile NYC marathon. Looking through our camera, we saw the wild beauty of the day.

How to Navigate the Darkness of our Time (Fred Rogers)

The great Mister Rogers who lived in the neighborhood where the Saturday’s heartbreaking shooting took place, had much to say about how to navigating darkness.

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