It's hard to talk about why I stopped writing. Not because I don't understand it, but because there's this fear that writing it down and posting it up for everyone to see will reveal some fundamental weakness on my part. When you live with the brain that I do, you learn not to trust your … Continue reading Block by Block
Category: Self-Reflection
Life, the Universe, and Everything
I turned 42 years old nine days ago. The old folk wisdom says that this will be the beginning of my sixth cycle of brand new cells, as the body completely replaces itself roughly every seven years. It's a fun idea, and a handy way of looking back at different stages of your life over … Continue reading Life, the Universe, and Everything
Zen Check 2022: Samadhi
I like to set my intention through this first week of 2022 by reviewing my understanding of the Noble Eightfold Path, being a Zen Buddhist and all. On Monday I went over the first of the Threefold Division, sila (or ethics). That blog post was unforgivably dry reading it over — sorry about that. I’m … Continue reading Zen Check 2022: Samadhi
Zen Check 2022: Sila
Happy New Year, everyone! I thought I would start the blog this year by doing a gut check on a few fundamentals. I identify as a Zen Buddhist, meaning that I adhere to the principles of both Zen AND Buddhism. Especially in the United States, Zen has become its own discipline — a way of … Continue reading Zen Check 2022: Sila
Kwanzaa 2021: Imani (Faith)
I lost my faith in humanity on the night of November 8th, 2016. It was the end of a terrible year of campaigning where Donald Trump had harassed his way to the GOP nomination despite — or perhaps because of, in hindsight — his egregious temperament. I had thought he’d demonstrated his unfitness to be … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2021: Imani (Faith)
Kwanzaa 2021: Nia (Purpose)
What is your purpose here? Even if you’ve thought a lot about the question and have an answer locked and loaded, there’s no denying it’s a heavy thing to ponder. What are any of us doing here, really? Why do we exist, and have the faculties to wonder about our existence? There is no objective … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2021: Nia (Purpose)
Kwanzaa 2021: Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics)
It is an unfortunate fact of life that we live in a capitalist society. For Black Americans in the United States, this means that one of the fundamental levers of life has been purposefully and aggressively tilted away from us since the days of a promised 40 acres and a mule. Disenfranchisement through discrimination in … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2021: Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics)
Kwanzaa 2021: Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)
The Fantastic Mr. Fox opens with the titular hero plucking an apple fresh from the tree beneath a clear golden sky, listening to a song about the King of the Wild Frontier. It ends with Mr. Fox admiring the artificial stars on the genetically-modified apple glinting in the fluorescent light of the supermarket that has … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2021: Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)
Kwanzaa 2021: Umoja (Unity)
The past five years have been very difficult ones for me. The fundamental shock of seeing my fellow countryfolk vote for Trump in the 2016 election curdled into a trauma over time, as I learned just how mistaken I was about the attitudes of the Americans around me — even folks I thought had been … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2021: Umoja (Unity)
Kwanzaa 2020: Ujima
Habari gani, fam? 2020 has made me keenly aware of my place within my community, and how important my relationships are to me. When George Floyd was murdered by police officers and the collective frustration of millions of Americans bubbled over into street protests, it meant a lot that folks checked in on me because … Continue reading Kwanzaa 2020: Ujima
From the Desk of Jakebe T. Rabbit 