The March Collection
On community, comedy, coaching, and more.
Somehow it is the last day of March… that’s crazy! A very happy Easter to those who observe, and if today you are looking for something related to Easter’s powerful themes of dying and rising, check out last Sunday’s post, On the Day of Your Rebirth.
Seeing how it is the last Sunday of the month, it is time for the March Collection! This time I’ve gathered up ten things that I’ve spent time with over the past month. For each one, I’ve also included a brief statement that captures WHY I was interested in it, mostly as a way of introducing myself to you a bit more.
(I share a bit about myself here too:)
Enjoy the ten things, in a moment. But a quick request first... If you’ve read my book The Way Home, would you please take a minute to rate (5 starts please!) and review (can be brief) on Amazon. It really helps get the word out. Also, note that you can still leave a review even if you purchased the book elsewhere. THANK YOU!
1. Because she created an “old-fashioned, mainstream hit” TV show in the wild world of streaming television and niche programming, and I co-wrote a TV show last year that we are trying to get out into the world.
This profile of TV comedy Abbot Elementary’s creator and star Quinta Brunson in The New Yorker.
“Comedy—it’s wack to say, but it is kind of a religion,” Brunson, who left her parents’ faith at twenty-one, told me. “I didn’t want to admit it to myself, but it was, like, ‘This is it for me. This is what I believe in.’”
2. Because he lives in Milwaukee, mentions watching all of the pre-2020 Marvel movies in order in his memoir, and, if my math is correct, graduated high school in 1999.
The Right Kind of White, the brand new memoir by Garrett Bucks of The White Pages on Substack is a unique, tender, funny, and insightful read.
3. Because genuine community has always been important to me and we are always navigating technology use with our two teens and one pre-teen.
This NY Times piece: Few Smartphones, Some Beer: A Christian Village Grapples With Modernity.
How does an enclave modeled after Christian communities of the first century engage with the modern world? And will young Bruderhof be able to adhere to the group’s values in the face of increasing exposure to the outside world via the internet, or will it lead them to reject what some regard as an oppressive way of life?
AND
Like his peers, Franklin doesn’t have a smartphone. But he’s chagrined at how teenagers he plays sports with outside the community use them. “If you are in a situation where you feel a little uncomfortable, the first thing you do is reach into your pocket and look at your phone to avoid contact,” he said. “Instead of making friends, you’ll just hop on Instagram and zone out.”
4. Because I am a “coach” but always wrestling with how to communicate the transformative, spiritual, inner work that I do with people and also how to get the word out there so I can do more of it.
Didier Sylvain is a self-leadership coach I follow on Instagram. This past week he shared some insightful reflections (linked below) on the controversy surrounding self-help guru Jay Shetty.
Sylvain writes:
‘Coaching’ is more of a trend than a calling. Too many call themselves guides when leading unfulfilled and undirected lives. We need to examine the desire to influence. The label of coaching is noisy, potentially unnecessary, and often distracting. Unless one is rooted in self-responsible service and collective betterment, no gracias.
5. Because I teach meditation.
I’ve started sharing some brief meditations on others stuff on TikTok, such as this 5-minute Anti-Anxiety Meditation:
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6. Because I haven’t laughed this hard at a movie in a long time and this film is made by a bunch of people from Milwaukee.
The LA Times called this indie film “Mania from Heaven.” The NY Times raved about it. Hundreds of Beavers just completed its US tour and my guess is that soon it will be available to purchase for streaming.
7. Because after living there for fourteen years Seattle is one of my homes and because baseball, which I don’t really follow until August, is starting soon.
The History of the Seattle Mariners: Supercut Edition by Dorktown/Secret Base tells the fascinating story of the Seattle Mariners baseball franchise.
8. Because, again, community.
Can You Solve Loneliness? These Startups Are Betting On It. Entrepreneurs focused on social connection are popping up around the country amid what medical practitioners are calling an epidemic
Investor money is fueling other startups that aim to strengthen friendships and provide community.
Hmm…
AND
There are also plans for an apparel line.
Hmmmmm…
9. Because I’ve had the sacred privilege of volunteering as a hospice companion for the past year and a half (Read Ram Dass, Dumbbells, and Decay for more).
What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living - Researchers are documenting a phenomenon that seems to help the dying, as well as those they leave behind.
The research, published in 2014 in The Journal of Palliative Medicine, found that visions are far more common and frequent than other researchers had found, with an astonishing 88 percent of patients reporting at least one vision…
Patients often relive seminal moments from their lives, including joyful experiences of falling in love and painful ones of rejection... Most significant, as people near the end of their lives, the frequency of visions increases, further centering on deceased people or pets. It is these final visions that provide patients, and their loved ones, with profound meaning and solace.
10. Because I enjoyed this conversation with Darrin about themes from my book, The Way Home: Discovering the Hero’s Journey to Wholeness at Midlife.
Check out the I Dare You Podcast with Darrin Johnson.