(UN)Spiritual Direction

“I have come to understand that the self, my self, is inherently sacred. By virtue of its own improbability, its own miracle, its own emergence … And so I lift up my head, and I bear my own witness, with affection and tenderness and respect. And in so doing, I sanctify myself with my own grace.” - Ursula Goodenough

There is a deep fear in the human heart of unknowing, and yet, the mystery of existence does not offer us certitudes. To truly awaken to full adulthood is to face the uncertainty, the absurdity, as well as the wonder of being with a paradoxical trust and a faith that something true and beautiful lies at the core of every heart.

Even as our traditional religious institutions crumble and fail to address the realities, discoveries and concerns of the modern world, there is a deep hunger for meaning, transcendence and a felt experience of connection to a larger story.

“If religion is not about God, then what on earth is it about (for heaven sake)? It is about us. It is about manipulating our brains so that we might think, feel, and act in ways that are good for us, both individually and collectively. Religious traditions work like the bow of a violin, playing upon the strings of human nature to produce harmonious relations between individuals and their social and physical environments.” - Loyal Rue

What I call (UN)Spiritual Direction is essentially just companioning people on their life journey without using religious frameworks to steer the process. Learning how to approach life as sacred, and build a personal life philosophy according to your own value system is all possible without needing to resort to the dogma of formal religion. We don’t have to check our brains at the door in order to experience what we sometimes call soul. A sense of the spiritual can be as straightforward as a path and a set of practices that increase our experience of love, joy and peace.

“The primary prayer is one of awe, and it is probably the most effective prayer because through it we turn to our origins and just behold with a sense of gratitude.” - Brian Swimme

In addition, if you have transcended your childhood faith or your worldview has deconstructed and you're wondering what to do, how to cope, how to relate to your partner, and you need someone to talk to in order to know what's on the other side... let’s talk. This has become a cornerstone of much of my work over the past four years. And its no surprise. I did this myself over the last 15 years. And it was hard. And it was lonely. And you don't have to do it like that.