Categories
life

Farewell Old Friend

It’s never easy to lose a friend, and sometimes their passing truly stings despite how anticipated it may have been. My friend Michael died this morning and my heart grieves. We became neighbors when I first moved to the coast 15 years ago and we remained friends after he sold his home and moved across […]

Categories
life

Good People

I sure appreciate having good people in my life. If nothing else, my epitaph someday could read, “Here lies Ted. Managed to attract really good people into his life.” Good people are a treat to be with. They mean well, lend a hand (or a supportive ear), say kind things, contribute to community, and try […]

Categories
america life

Friends, Golf, Laughs and Silence

I’m feeling very blessed these days with friends, and with the time I’ve been able to have with them recently. Two separate times this summer, I was able to have a combined few weeks in the Chicago area where I grew up and still have several good friends. I then drove through the southwest and […]

Categories
Eastern Europe home life

Home, the Ground of Love, and Flights of Fancy

I’m sitting here in Bulgaria and over the past day have been feeling homesick – not acutely, but definitely missing my home. Partly it may have to do with the strangeness of the reality of the place I’ve been here, a touristy tacky beach resort called Golden Sands, compared to the incredible natural beauty of […]

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favorites home life western europe

The Constellation of My Life, in an Onion

I was just eating lunch here at Karma Ling in France, and something sweet and wonderful happened. We spend the first 15 minutes of lunch in silence (which I very much appreciate), and after taking a bite of some veggie stew with rice, I started to tear up. It was predominantly an onion bite, but […]

Categories
spirituality western europe

Noise in the Silence, Silence in the Noise

I want to write a little about noise. Not the obvious honking horns and airplanes taking off kind of noise, but rather the noise that only appears when everything is perfectly silent. I am writing this from Karma Ling, a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery in the French Alps where I am spending a week. Twice a […]

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family life

Lives as They Unfold

I’m back in Chicago where I’ve been for a little over a week now. As most of you know, this is where I was born and grew up so I have lots of family and friends here. I’m getting to the age now where I’ve had a chance to see how lives that I’ve known […]

Categories
england love

Lust for Existence

I’m learning something about sexual power and energy and I like that which is beginning to become clear. I’m in the south of England right now and I’ve spent a couple of days with my friend Paul whom I met while traveling in India. He’d quite an amazing person and one whom I feel I […]