Thursday, November 30, 2017

Navajo Nation

I have recently taken hikes on land in the Navajo Nation and sensed the power of that landscape – majestic and mystical, supremely mythical, and even eerily other-worldly at times. We know how sacred the land is to the Navajos and other Native American cultures.

It is easy to feel that sacredness when walking through the mesas and arroyos, the canyons and peaks, gazing upon the multi-colored sandstone. As we notice the petroglyphs on those sandstone walls, we realize through those primitive pieces of art and records of a culture just how long we humans have been on this earth. The humans who carved the petroglyphs on those walls are our ancestors and family, and the landscape is our precious legacy.

Thursday, November 23, 2017

Love and Power


Some people think that hate is the opposite of love. Some would argue, however, that power is love’s opposite. To lord power over another is to deny him his emotional freedom and to enslave him. Love is about setting someone free, honoring his individuality, and giving him room to grow into his own. 

The connection that occurs in a loving relationship results in expansiveness. We become our best selves through loving and being loved. Someone else’s power over us diminishes us. Truly loving relationships improve our emotional health as well as our cognitive health: we become more present, more alert, more aware of not only the beloved but also ourselves. Love is, in short, a powerful path to self-knowledge.