Hands Like Roots: Notes on an Entangled Contemplative Path will be available for purchase in late April, 2025. This book, the fruit of twenty years of observations within and without, plus a hell of a lot of dead-ends, is being published in both Canada and the U.S. by Santos Books.
I subtitled this book Notes on an Entangled Contemplative Life because I believe entanglement is our greatest gift. Whether the view is quantum physics, mycorrhizal networks that lace the ground beneath our feet, or sacred connections across time and space and realities, we are bound together. Entanglement is the nature of the Godhead and hence all creation, if you will. Our humble acts of love, our heartfelt prayers, our timid moves toward forgiveness can and will change the world. In these days of disarray, it’s good to remember and trust this holy relational reality.
At the bottom of this page will soon be links to the places where you can purchase Hands Like Roots. If you’re interested in attending an on-line or in-person book reading, those events will be listed in the Calendar.
In the book Unshakeable by trauma therapist Jo Ann Rosen, there’s a discussion of anchors, those simple practices that return us to awareness. Rosen speaks about anchors because trauma responses bypass all our good skills. We forget what we know and react instinctively. Instinctive reaction may be the perfect response when a rattlesnake is rattling, but it’s …
Margaret Wheatly, in her book “Who Do We Choose to Be?” argues that our culture is at the end of its time. Every civilization, she says, goes through a predictable cycle. Wheatley places us firmly in the “decadent” phase, which is the last step before chaos and dissolution. Wealth, celebrity, and entertainment are central; compassion, …
Whenever an angel shows up in a sacred text, the first thing they say is, “Be not afraid.” This is akin to a doctor’s visit that begins, “Why don’t you sit down before we talk about these test results?” Angels tell people not to be afraid because the next thing they’re going say is sure …
There are some big things facing us these days: “us” collectively as in the human race, and “us” as in my little family. Some of those collective big things are so big—global climate change, vicious politics—that I have no idea how to repair, heal, or change them. Sure, I know how to complain; I also …
I have a friend whom I will call Georgianne, because that is not her name. She is a brilliant and deep human being, whose career was sidelined by Covid. Over the past four years, she has struggled to sort out what her work is. Not how to support herself, but what she should be offering …
I have been reassembling our freezers, moving turkey and frozen wontons and homemade soup from the inside freezer to the newly empty outside freezer. It’s empty because friends have been able to go home: their frozen chickens, applesauce and tomato paste have gone home, too. I am also re-assembling my office. Strewn across desk and …
I have been thinking that we may have reached the chronic, as opposed to acute, stage of our forest fire saga. For many of us, evacuation orders and alerts are rescinded, at least for now. For others, there’s at least a system to check on livestock and land. People are making plans to sustain a …
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