Hopeful Thinking

Nearly twenty years ago I was the custodian of a loving Dalmatian named Hadley.  Originally from Massachusetts but at the time living in Toronto, I always named my animals after towns in my home state.  In addition to my beloved Hadley, I had previously named a cat Belmont and a crazy Border Collie, Paxton.  I loved how the names were not only cute and somehow appropriate as animal proper names, but that they expressed my love for my home while I was so far away. Hadley and I had a routine.  Every day I’d walk her on leash to the edge of the park and then unhook her to chase the squirrels that had gathered in the temporary absence of canines.  Off she bolted and the shiny black squirrels, predominant in this part of  North America, scattered like cockroaches in the light.  I watched her run after one in particular.  I wasn’t worried because she never actually caught any.  For all her speed, they were usually far more agile than she and cou...

Wil Darcangelo Sermon - First Parish Church, UU, Sept 21, 2014 “All Hail the New YouTubeitude” Meditation Exercise and Sermon Meditation Exercise: Be here now.  American Philosopher Ram Dass made that suggestion to us back in 1971.  But what did it mean?  My understanding is that it means to live in the present, of course, but what does that mean?  How can we live in the present when we need to plan and prepare?  How can we live in the present when there are things from our past which still haunt us?  The answer is to just do it for a moment.  Give your body a break once in a while from all the stressful hormones our brains pump into our cells when we’re all worked up about something that is either keeping us mired in the past or stressing us out about the future. Those stress hormones pollute our cells and make them function less efficiently.  They don’t process out the fats as well.  They don’t absorb nutrients as well.  But ...