White privilege is having the choice to be white or not, to claim membership in a white group identity or not, to be aware of race or not, and to talk about race or not—all without consequence.

The practice of metta is like composting. It may not seem like much is occurring, but deep inside the heap of your practice, good things are happening. In time, you will have rich, nourishing soil to feed and seed kindness. You could also consider metta practice a heart technology—a software upgrade you put into the hardwiring of your conditioning.

and mind. In this practice, we are discovering, step by step, the experience of walking—something we do a lot but are not aware of. This practice, regularly repeated in the course of a fifteen-minute walking period, sends a message to the mind that we can carry our own weight and balance our own lives. This is not a thought; this is a potent,

“But when I look at you, I don’t see race.” As an African American woman, this well-meaning comment from the lens of the white individual renders my experience as a racial group member invisible, my history whitewashed, and my people at continued risk. It’s an innocence I can’t afford to have. When whites don’t see race when they look at me, they

many of us may not understand how it works, but it is the system we have. And we need to know how it works before we can change it or create a new one. Do a Google search to learn how the system works and get proactively involved. There are people within the community who are politically savvy and resourceful. Seek them out, learn from them, and

Compassion is the keen awareness of the interdependence of all things. THOMAS MERTON, American Catholic writer and theologian

The voting process is what put the people who govern our lives into office. If we do not participate in the electoral process, we can’t change its dysfunction, and we cannot influence decisions and policies that impact our communities. We may not like the system or trust it, and

How is the body feeling? Where is the breath? Can I be more at ease in this moment? What supports you to be calm? See if you can cultivate more of that. What are some of the more common conditions that cause you to lose calmness? Are you aware of when calmness shifts? Which habits of mind generally flip you out of a state of calm? How does calmness

Our parents and their parents shaped our early views and beliefs. As children, our caregivers’ expectations were programmed into our minds through reward and punishment. We learned to read body language and adapt to energy. As a result, we learned to perceive the world through our parents’ image. Much of who we are—including our appearance, skin