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A review in The New York Times declared Marlon James’s latest book “the novel of the decade, if not the century,” putting it in the company of Song of

One sentence puzzles me: The world was constantly speaking to Ancient Man. I do not understand why this sentence is in the past tense. The World still

we should all feel an obligation to tell stories about a human future that we actually want to be a part of.

Nussbaum highlights three essential virtuesin thinking about animals: wonder, whichdraws our attention to the value of animals;compassion, which alert

However, I do think there is an important difference between being inspired by another world and believing that world contains the missing piece of yo

Wonder includes the capacity to be in awe of humanity, even your own. It allows us to jettison the dangerous belief that things worthy of wonder can o

Attention is the unit of love. Whatever has your attention quite literally has your love, whether you mean to give it or not. If you track where you

Attention, on the other hand, just is life: your experience of being alive consists of nothing other than the sum of everything to which you pay atten

Synesthesia Club

We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing. – George Bernard Shaw

Seriousness saddles the work with a burden. It misses the playful side of being human. The chaotic exuberance of being present in the world. The light

Novelist Charles Kingsley on happiness: “We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us hap

An alive culture replaces distraction and escapism with mindful attention, direct experience, active participation, creative expression, deep connecti

Looking back on the bleak period when depression swept away the herons from the sky of his mind and voided the world of wonder, he reflects: There are

The more advanced we get, the more we seem to forget what made us human in the first place: wonder, imagination, the strange glittery unpredictability

This isn't just performative magic — it's belief magic that expands our sense of what's possible, our sense of our own power, and our capacity to move

Looking back on the bleak period when depression swept away the herons from the sky of his mind and voided the world of wonder, he reflects: There are

I have a theory about nostalgia: It happens because the best survival strategy in an uncertain world is to overworry. When you look back, you forget a

There is something frustratingly Tao about curiosity. (1) It is by following your curiosity that you can bring something new and beautiful into the wo

The more advanced we get, the more we seem to forget what made us human in the first place: wonder, imagination, the strange glittery unpredictability

“If your world is not enchanted, you’re not paying attention.”

When you learn something new for the first time you flail miserably at it, but eventually you identify your weaknesses and over time the process towar

In filling the well, think magic. Think delight. Think fun. Do not think duty. Do notdo what you should do—spiritual sit-ups like reading a dull but r

Everybody wants to have a village, but few are willing to be villagers. Building presence takes work. It requires vulnerability, patience, and the wil

“Authoritarians cannot rise if there are strong communities and people are acting with joy. That is, you need despair and anger in order for an author

They've still got their morning paper and their coffee and their time And they still enjoy their evenings with the skeptics and the wine But all the w

Side projects as the key to the good life By Marty Bell • 31 Jul 2025 When I was 13, I created a chat room for teenagers to talk about art and photog

We've made "work" synonymous with suffering, when it should be synonymous with building.

“If you want a new world, start making it right now, in whatever you are doing.” This is the best advice I ever had, it came from Brian Eno. If you im

If something inside of you is real, we will probably find it interesting, and it will probably be universal. So you must risk placing real emotion at

Be Honest About Intentions: Clearly communicate what you can realistically commit to, avoiding overpromising.