Episodes
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Scott reflections on the quote from Amanda Gorman, "There is always light. If only we are brave enough to see it. If only we are brave enough to be it."
Here is the entire poem, "The Hill We Climb," from which this quote comes:
The Hill We Climb
When day comes we ask ourselves,
where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry,
a sea we must wade
We've braved the belly of the beast
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace
And the norms and notions
of what just is
Isn't always just-ice
And yet the dawn is ours
before we knew it
Somehow we do it
Somehow we've weathered and witnessed
a nation that isn't broken
but simply unfinished
We the successors of a country and a time
Where a skinny Black girl
descended from slaves and raised by a single mother
can dream of becoming president
only to find herself reciting for one
And yes we are far from polished
far from pristine
but that doesn't mean we are
striving to form a union that is perfect
We are striving to forge a union with purpose
To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and
conditions of man
And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us
but what stands before us
We close the divide because we know, to put our future first,
we must first put our differences aside
We lay down our arms
so we can reach out our arms
to one another
We seek harm to none and harmony for all
Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true:
That even as we grieved, we grew
That even as we hurt, we hoped
That even as we tired, we tried
That we'll forever be tied together, victorious
Not because we will never again know defeat
but because we will never again sow division
Scripture tells us to envision
that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree
And no one shall make them afraid
If we're to live up to our own time
Then victory won't lie in the blade
But in all the bridges we've made
That is the promise to glade
The hill we climb
If only we dare
It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit,
it's the past we step into
and how we repair it
We've seen a force that would shatter our nation
rather than share it
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy
And this effort very nearly succeeded
But while democracy can be periodically delayed
it can never be permanently defeated
In this truth
in this faith we trust
For while we have our eyes on the future
history has its eyes on us
This is the era of just redemption
We feared at its inception
We did not feel prepared to be the heirs
of such a terrifying hour
but within it we found the power
to author a new chapter
To offer hope and laughter to ourselves
So while once we asked,
how could we possibly prevail over catastrophe?
Now we assert
How could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?
We will not march back to what was
but move to what shall be
A country that is bruised but whole,
benevolent but bold,
fierce and free
We will not be turned around
or interrupted by intimidation
because we know our inaction and inertia
will be the inheritance of the next generation
Our blunders become their burdens
But one thing is certain:
If we merge mercy with might,
and might with right,
then love becomes our legacy
and change our children's birthright
So let us leave behind a country
better than the one we were left with
Every breath from my bronze-pounded chest,
we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one
We will rise from the gold-limbed hills of the west,
we will rise from the windswept northeast
where our forefathers first realized revolution
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the midwestern states,
we will rise from the sunbaked south
We will rebuild, reconcile and recover
and every known nook of our nation and
every corner called our country,
our people diverse and beautiful will emerge,
battered and beautiful
When day comes we step out of the shade,
aflame and unafraid
The new dawn blooms as we free it
For there is always light,
if only we're brave enough to see it
If only we're brave enough to be it
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Scott talks about how the overwhelming response to being able to see both the northern lights and the ATLAS comet speaks to our longing for a higher, spiritual perspective on life. We all need to be on the lookout for moments of awe and wonder because they are always to be found if only we have the eyes to see.
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Missing episodes?
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We can't pour from an empty cup. Self-compassion is an essential practice for avoiding burnout and exhaustaion. This simple 5 minute practice, done on a regular basis, can help refill our spiritul and emotional cups.
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Listening is the most caring, the most healing gift we can give to another person, especially when that person is suffering in some way.
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In this episode, Scott discusses how the illusion of separateness fosters an attitude of 'othering,' leading to actions that undermine both our wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. He explains that awakening from this illusion provides the spiritual foundation necessary to love ourselves and others, including those we find difficult to love.
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Loving what is, is a practice, a spiritual discipline. As with any spiritual discipline, when practiced regularly, it can profoundly affect our wellbeing and the wellbeing of our relationships.
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Scott discusses the power and practice of prayer and reflects on how what we witness in the Olympics can help us deepen our understanding of prayer.
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The Olympics remind us of the power of ceremonies and rituals. In this episode, Scott discusses how ceremonies and rituals are equally important in our personal lives and in our families, friendships, and communities.
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Walking meditation is a contemplative prayer practice that many people find works for them better than sitting meditation. Scott witnessed thousands of people doing walking meditation on his recent trip to Dharamsala, India, and shares how this practice has become important to his spiritual life.
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Loving Kindness is both a form of prayer and a way of being. It is a practice that can be done as part of sitting prayer/meditation and/or walking prayer/meditation. Scott recently experienced the power of this, both as prayer and action, from the Tibetan people he recently spent time with in Dharmsala, India.
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Scott has just returned from almost three weeks in India, including a "Mindful Medicine Conference" that he and his wife Holly were part of in Dharamsala, India, home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In this first of several episodes, he talks about what he learned from the Tibetan people that were his hosts, and how that learning can help all of us.
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Continuing the series on "Holy Listening," this week Scott talks about "Wholly Listening." This involves listening to God not just through prayer and meditation but also through our bodies, emotions, and relationships. It is a whole-person approach to listening, one where we listen with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind.
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One expression of Holy Listening is contemplative prayer. In this form of prayer, our primary focus is to be still and listen to God. In this episode, Scott talks about how practices like centering prayer and meditation can help us listen more deeply to what theologian and civil rights activist Howard Thurman calls "the sound of the Genuine."
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Continuing the discussion on holy listening, Scott talks about how "believing is seeing," in that our filters can often interfere with our ability to truly hear one another, and to hear the presence of the Holy in one another.
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In this episode, Scott makes the case that listening is at the heart of both a deeper spiritual life and a life of wellness. He invites each listener to reflect on their own practice of listening--to themselves, others, and the presence of the Divine.
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The concept of Soft Start-Ups is one of the most helpful practices for enhancing all of our relationships. Learn about it in this episode.
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