Aaron « Yellow Brick Road: Your Path to Heart & Health

Awaken the New Species

By Debra Basham, on November 1, 2020

We must not wish for the disappearance of our troubles but for the grace to transform them.

~ Simone Weil

Yesterday John did not mention my blog post, so I did not share it with him. I watched the choice points for stories to arise: he doesn’t really care; he still does not value what […]

The Things that Frighten Us

By Debra Basham, on October 31, 2020

Denial and lies are almost an intrinsic part of an epidemic. ~ Nicholas A. Christakis

On the heels of the previously expressed idea that John and Debra (and you and yours!) truly are the macrocosm and microcosm, soon after my blog was posted yesterday morning I saw a post John made Tuesday on Facebook: […]

Compassion is Not a Luxury

By Debra Basham, on October 29, 2020

We live in a time when science is validating what humans have known throughout the ages: that compassion is not a luxury; it is a necessity for our well-being, resilience, and survival.

~ Roshi Joan Halifax

This morning I saw a headline “How Next Door Neighbors With Different Political Views Have Stayed Friends.” The photo […]

On the Shark’s Terms

By Debra Basham, on October 18, 2020

Like my parents taught me, ‘There are no monsters in the sea, only the ones we make up in our heads.’ ~ Christina Zenato

A friend shared an amazing video of a woman swimming with sharks. But this woman is not just “swimming” with the sharks. Christina Zenato, a professional diver, is removing fish […]

Let it Shine!

By Debra Basham, on October 10, 2020

We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of […]

All Roads Lead to Somewhere

By Debra Basham, on October 1, 2020

The headline: The first debate between President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden deteriorated into a bitter showdown …

It would be so easy for me to pass judgment about how unskillful bitter exchanges are were it not for the fact that I had just let myself get triggered by a friend I care […]

New Frontiers

By Debra Basham, on September 16, 2020

Sometimes people get the mistaken notion that spirituality is a separate department of life, the penthouse of existence.

But rightly understood, it is a vital awareness that pervades all realms of our being.

~Br. David Steindl-Rast

Today, it is this beautiful planet we call home that calls us home to our hearts. We […]

What Are You Doing Today?

By Debra Basham, on August 24, 2020

The farmer may only be planting a seed, but if he opens his eyes he is feeding the whole world. ~ Omaha Bee

This opening quotation kicked off a precious story about a three-person construction crew who was approached by a man asking what each was doing. The first said he was working for pittance […]

When Everything Falls Apart, What Remains?

By Debra Basham, on August 16, 2020

I am technically practicing silence in a meditation retreat at Heartwood Refuge and Retreat Center in Hendersonville, North Carolina. But I am attending via Zoom and my fingers are on the keyboard. The focus of this retreat with John Orr is When Everything Falls Apart, What Remains? This was John’s blurb about the retreat:

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My Longings

By Debra Basham, on July 18, 2020

“Strive to be uncynical, to be a hope-giving force, to be a steward of substance.” ~ Maria Popova Bulgarian-born, American-based writer

Last evening as we finished dominoes via Zoom, I asked what the most significant news of the day was. My friend said probably that the Trump administration ordered hospitals to bypass the Centers for […]

Yellow Brick Road: Your Path to Heart & Health