Seiryoku-Zenyo

From age 6-16, I trained extensively as a judoka. On the walls of our training hall, there hung two long banners with Japanese phrases on them. For whatever reason, I spent a lot of hours of my life transfixed on one of these banners. So transfixed, in fact, that I...

Now and Then, Eternally

Today, I feel inspired to write to the you that lives 5 years ago. To some, this may seem impossible, but it’s only a matter of time before this email reaches them. Ever got caught in a cloud of the cheap perfume of a passerby, because the scent happened to be the...

Who Is It For?

If I gave you a gift and when I come to visit you, I require it to have a prominent place in your home…was that a gift, or a mark of territory? If you come to my party and I insist that you should’ve at least brought a gift…was that a gift, or a...

Self, Not-self and Wholeness

“I’m not myself today”, I told my friend once. And they replied: “What if you are simply being a part of your self you refuse to acknowledge?” That’s a conversation I still have mentally bookmarked. In another conversation with...

The Art of Asking Great Questions

One of the more awkward phases of small talk (and ​making the transition to deeper conversations​) can be the one where you realize you want to keep the conversation going, but can’t think of good questions to ask. It’s a moment that can feel a bit like...