Tag: life
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Listening to Fear
How do you handle fear and self-doubt? I have faced plenty of self-doubt over the years, mainly in the form of imposter syndrome. When I started my doctorate, I had a nagging sense that I would be found out. I felt as though they had let me in by mistake. Not a clerical error, but…
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To Be Honest
What is a word or phrase that annoys you? There comes a time in every conversation when someone takes a deep breath, lowers their voice slightly, looks you in the eye, and says the three words that should make every sensible person reach for cover. “To be honest…” At which point I always want to…
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Stronger Than We Knew
What is a moment that made you realize you were stronger than you thought? The COVID lockdowns were a hard time for student accommodation providers. In one sense, we saw it coming before it hit in full force. We had protocols in place early. Then the university sent out an email saying classes would move…
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It’s a Gift to Exist
What is a simple pleasure in life that brings you joy? I have not always understood this, but walking is one of the great simple pleasures of life. Not walking for fitness, though that matters. Not walking to get somewhere, though that helps. Just walking. I often follow the same route. The dog beside me.…
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Curiosity Needs a Container
How do you stay motivated when learning something new? Learning is central to life. We learn from the day we are born. Children learn because the world is interesting, not because they have long-term plans. Children do not learn to walk because they are motivated by productivity goals. They fall, laugh, cry, get up, and…
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A Single Day
What’s a book that completely surprised you? Years ago, a writing teacher recommended Anne Tyler’s Breathing Lessons. It had won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, so I knew it came well regarded. Even so, I read it mostly out of respect for my teacher. Then I loved it. I wrote a few days ago…
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Training for Freedom
How can you build a regular fitness routine? Fitness matters to me, although I can always do better than I am currently doing. The one thing I do without fail is walk. Every day. Even when it is bitterly cold. Even when it is wet. Even when I do not especially feel like it. I…
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Ordinary Life Is Strange Enough
What is a classic book that you think is overrated? I read Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Unconsoled in 1995 because, at the time, it seemed to be the book everyone was reading. It was described as a modern classic. It had literary ambition, critical attention, dream logic, and enough bafflement to make you wonder whether the…
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The Wealth of Less
What are the biggest benefits of minimalist living? My father started each day with a cup of tea. The cup was huge. Not quite a mixing bowl, but close. On it were the words: I’m not greedy, but I want enough. I never knew the story behind that cup, but I understood the joke. It…
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The Grace of Welcome
What’s the most interesting local custom you’ve encountered? The most interesting local custom I have encountered is not interesting because it is quaint. It is interesting because it asks something of us. I am thinking of Welcome to Country or Acknowledgement of Country ceremonies. They are not the same thing. A Welcome to Country is…
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The Library I Cannot Carry
If you had to describe your ideal life what would it look like? I was still in my teens when my grandmother looked at my bookshelves and declared that she had never seen so many books. At the time, I took this as a compliment. Or at least confirmation that I was becoming the sort…
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The Glasses
What super power do you wish you had and why? Me:So this is the superpower? Super-Me:Yes. Me:A pair of glasses? Super-Me:You were expecting a cape? Me:At least something more dramatic.Flight. Strength. Deliverance. Super-Me:No.Just sight. Me:I already wear glasses. Super-Me:Not like these. Me:What do they do? Super-Me:They let you seewhat people are carrying. Me:Their thoughts? Super-Me:No.That…
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The Compass, Not the App
What gives you direction in life? I used to think direction meant knowing where I was going. Now I think it means knowing what I must keep facing. In the old days, we followed a map. We unfolded it across the steering wheel, argued about the best route, and tried to imagine the landscape before…
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The First Quote
Do you have a quote you live your life by or think of often? There are too many quotes to choose from. Some stay with us because they are beautiful. Some because they are useful. Some because someone we loved used to say them. And some because they arrive at a particular moment and never…
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When I feel most productive
When do you feel most productive? In a recent reflection on circadian rhythms and work, Lisa Leong makes a simple but important point: not everyone does their best thinking at the same time of day. Some people are sharp early. Some gather speed later. Some can make good decisions in the morning but should not…
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This Is How I Mean It
What are your favourite emojis? In years to come, what tales I’ll tell future generations — or anyone who will pause long enough to listen. Because all young people should know what shaped their world, and which small yellow faces were involved. “Call that communicating?” I’ll say. “You should have seen us before emojis.” They’ll…
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The Conversation I Keep Returning To
What topics do you like to discuss? This blog began as a way of paying attention. After church on Sunday, I often found myself still thinking about the sermon while the rest of life moved on: lunch, emails, conversations, Monday’s work. Writing gave me a way to sit with the message a little longer. It…
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On Risk and Honesty
When is the last time you took a risk? How did it work out? The last time I took a risk was a couple of days ago, when I wrote in my blog about a time I should have said no. Writing about it felt risky. Not dramatically risky. But still, it was a risk…
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When I Should Have Said No
Write about a time when you didn’t take action but wish you had. What would you do differently? When I was in theological college, I worked on weekends as a student minister in a church. My senior minister was very conservative, authoritarian, and very forceful in his opinions. At the time, we were building a…
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Letting the Day Wear Off
How do you unwind after a demanding day? First, I come home and take the dog to the local forest for a while. It is not really a forest. It is a park. But people call it The Forest, which makes it sound much more impressive. I throw the ball for her to catch. Not…
The Afterword 