On Spending Time
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Hello friends, I've spent the week with friends on the opposite side of the continent from where I live. These are people I've known for decades. It is always good to see them. We challenge and support each other, and together, deepen our work and expand our minds. One thing you may not know about me is that I used to travel. A lot. While I appreciate the gift of the amazing places I've seen while speaking and teaching, and am some grateful for the people I've met... travel was never my thing. And then I burned out. So it takes a lot for me to travel outside my time zone these days. But it is also good for me to do on occasion. It shifts me out of my comfort zone, challenging my status quo. What does that for you? Is it getting up at a different time? Shifting your exercise routine? Getting in touch with someone you haven't seen for a long time? Taking a class? Starting a new and challenging project? Reading something you would not normally read? Visiting a place you've never been, even locally? Standing on your head? This calendar year, I'm engaged in an experiment to reset my inertia toward something that feeds my life more thoroughly and offers a chance to commit to different disciplines. I'm spending time with that, just as I spent time with these old friends. When we commit to making time for something new, we don't know what might happen. And for me? That is the true gift, and the deeper challenge. Because we're all facing the great unknown. We may as well get in some practice. Best wishes - Thorn I had a wonderful conversation with hip hop emcee and educator Davin Thompson, aka Do D.A.T. We discuss freestyle hip hop, spiritual practice, and showing up for life. I hope you enjoy it. You can listen on YouTube or your favorite podcast channel: Magic, Creativity, and Life
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T. Thorn Coyle
Hello friends, Good. Bad. Earth. Sky. Poverty. Wealth. Night. Day. Old. Young. Up. Down. In. Out. Love. Fear. Contrast is part of how we learn the world and find our place in it. Contrast can bring beauty and harmony. Contrast also brings strife. When I’m writing, I reach for both contrast and flow. In fiction, especially, contrast is necessary. Without contrast, there is no conflict, and without conflict—which can be as simple as a problem that needs solving—there is no story. My books on...
Hello friends, It’s the first of August, which in parts of the Northern Hemisphere is considered a time of first harvest. This varies by region, of course, and has been affected by climate change as well, but I always pause at the beginning of August to ponder life, and wealth, and the fruits we share. I reflect on my personal harvest and make time to thank all those whose labor keeps us fed.* Our household garden is filled with squash and cucumbers planted by my partner, and radishes the...
Hello friends, Are you struggling? Are you happy? Anxious? Overwhelmed? Courageous? Frantic? Disengaged? Do you have enough food to eat? A safe place to sleep? Friends? Connections? Work? Books? Music? Hobbies? Do you have enough to share? It’s that last one I return to, whenever times feel hard. Do I have enough to share? The answer, thankfully, is always yes. Now, I don’t have everything to share. I don’t always have the time and energy random people may want from me. And I only have so...