Coconut Cures Everything—or Is It Cacao?
One afternoon, in the small town of Tortuguero, Costa Rica, our small band of travelers sat together on plastic chairs under a veranda alongside a small hotel and listened to Cloied Taylor tell stories as he cooked up his family’s recipe for coconut candy. Cloied grew...
Understanding Pura Vida
I recently returned from a trip to Costa Rica. I think the country is on many people’s bucket lists, and I certainly found it to be gorgeous and inspiring. In fact, it’s been called the world’s leading ecotourism destination, and their national motto is pura vida,...
Releasing Old Understandings of Christianity
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been pondering how we might need to let go of outdated understandings of ourselves, our nation, and our culture. A full exploration of each of those topics could fill a book—or a library! Today, I tackle another major institution with an...
Releasing Old Understandings of Our Culture
What holds us back? This question can arise frequently over the course of a lifetime—whether we’re talking about the lifetime of a person, a community, our nation, or our culture. What prevents us from thriving, from being the best version of ourselves? It might be...
Releasing Old Understandings of Our Nation
Last week, I pondered the need to revisit our self-concepts and release what no longer serves or supports us. It’s important to do this on levels beyond the individual too. As I think about what’s facing our nation in the weeks after a definitely divided celebration...
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