of work-related questions from impatient colleagues who have been awaiting their arrival. For others, it might start off with a series of cheerful greetings from co-workers, questions about how their family members are doing or perhaps an offer to grab a quick cup of coffee before the daily work deluge begins. According to Wharton management professor Sigal Barsade, there is reason to believe that the latter scenario — which illustrates what she refers to as “companionate love” in the workplace — is not only more appealing, but also is vital to employee morale, teamwork and customer satisfaction. Companionate love is shown “when colleagues who are ... posted on Jun 12 2014 (22,714 reads)

She has had an ongoing, long-term collaboration with Parker J. Palmer, who is a dear friend of this ecosystem, with whom she has co-written several songs and performed a spoken word/music in live performance, including Healing the Heart of Democracy, and What We Need is Here: Hope, Hard Times, and Human Possibility. Newcomer and Palmer also are actively collaborating on The Growing Edge, a website, podcast, and retreat. I had the privilege of spending time with Parker and Carrie and loved them for their deep presence, the power with which they hold profound questions, and above all their Midwestern humor and sensibilities.  Carrie lives in the woods of southern Indiana wi... posted on Jul 15 2023 (2,637 reads)

principal and it was a pomegranate; it was a very weathered pomegranate that she had saved. It was special because it was given to her by a dear friend, Mark DuBois, a past Awakin Call guest and quite an environmental legend. So Anne said to herself "Oh this is such a special pomegranate, I'm going to give it to Theresa.” And she found a poem about pomegranates, a very sweet poem that she typed up, printed out and put a little ribbon on it. She made it so beautiful and full of love and at the end of this day at this school she gives it to the principal along with the story behind it. The principal is blown away and says " I interviewed Mark twenty years ago when I was ... posted on Aug 18 2016 (13,794 reads)

a little pencil in the hands of God who is scripting his love letter to the world.” ~Mother Theresa   Finding a letter of encouragement in the mail or tucked unexpectedly in the unlikeliest of places is sometimes all we need when in doubt or feeling down on our luck.  And imagine receiving this note anonymously, as if some magical force out there knew just what you needed to hear and wanted you to know that you haven’t been forgotten.  The First Letter.... In the fall of 2010, in the midst of her own depression and loneliness, Hannah Brencher was inspired to become this magical force.  Not inspired by something wonder... posted on Jan 11 2013 (26,059 reads)

public library. And the minute I learned how to read, it was as though I’d been given this huge treasure. Every book was a box I suddenly knew how to open, and in it, I could meet people, go to other worlds, go deep in all kinds of ways. And I spent my childhood in the hills and in the books. And those — so that was not maybe what people think of conventionally as spirituality, but that was my company, my encouragement, my teaching, my community. MS. TIPPETT: That’s lovely. The sweep of your work is wonderful and it’s daunting as an interviewer, but I actually thought I would start with — I’d just love to have a conversation with you about this ... posted on Jun 25 2016 (10,619 reads)

-- a renaissance of compassionate societies. What follows is an edited transcript of an Awakin Call interview with Joserra, moderated by Rina Patel. You can read the full transcript or listen to the audio here. Rina Patel: I want to jump right into things and ask you what a Re-Love-ution is? Joserra Gonzalez: I had an experience in India, two years of volunteer work, and I was touched by many of the things I could see there. I can say I have never received so much love. It really touched me deeply how people treated me, how everyone gave me everything without expectations, with so much love and patience. And since that experience for me it is about this: how ca... posted on Jul 21 2017 (8,361 reads)

of a road with a car fire.  A random stranger put out the fire, said ‘pay it forward,’ and left. She still has no idea who that person was.  It just kind of resonated on a give-first mentality, the generosity of doing things for others without asking anything in return, just hoping the small acts of kindness make ripples. And that's why I resonate with the ServiceSpace movement -- because they say, ‘hey, let's do small things, or big things; let's just love and serve others.’ Preeta: So in the prairie where you grew up, there is so much about individualism and finding your own way in the world.  There’s pride about rugged ind... posted on Jan 2 2019 (3,193 reads)

Letters from la Pineta" by DailyGood volunteer Jane Jackson is more than a book -- it is a living gesture of love that wings its way between the visible and invisible world. A book that embodies hospitality in its deepest sense. For to truly welcome love and all its bright gifts we are required to keep our hearts open when grief's shadow descends. And that is exactly what Jane does in this book letter by heartfelt letter.  Written in the years following her beloved husband Blyden's passing, the letters are addressed to him, and to Jasmine their granddaughter who arrived on this Earth after he had "changed address." She writes them from Mornese -- the It... posted on Feb 14 2020 (4,671 reads)

it took you a little while to come to this. One thing that you have started to say that is really helpful is that you've started to see the danger of this refrain that's everywhere out there in our culture to follow your passion, follow your passion. And that that also becomes a way that people feel themselves excluded because they're not sure what their artistic passion would be. Or again, if it's their passion, can they really measure the value they're creating? And I love the language of “curiosity” you use, and I'd love for you to talk some more about that. I mean, one thing you've said is the difference between passion and curiosity as someth... posted on Sep 5 2016 (16,703 reads)

But her brand new book, Becoming Wise, is, for me, her most eloquent and passionate book yet. And it’s really a call to hope and a call to action. And it looks at how age-old issues are taking new forms and perhaps inviting new responses as we try to chart our way through this young century. So, please join me in welcoming Krista Tippett. [applause] Of course, you know how I’m going to begin, because it’s how you begin all your shows. [laughter] And it’s a lovely soft way to begin, which is to go to the roots and the childhood of your guests. And ask them about how, as children, they first began thinking about larger things. And I know that you are the ... posted on Jul 10 2016 (14,000 reads)

does it mean to live wisely and well and what does it take? How can we cultivate qualities such as love, wisdom, kindness, and compassion?”  Our guest today, Dr. Roger Walsh, addresses these questions. A man with an eclectic past, Roger has explored contemplative life as a professor, physician, therapist, celebrated author, spouse, spiritual practitioner, and inquisitive human being.   He is a former circus acrobat, as well as a record holder in the fields of high diving and trampolining. Roger claims to have no final answers about life and meaning; yet through a combination of spiritual wisdom and practical tools, he offers hope and healing for us all, individually... posted on Jan 17 2019 (6,157 reads)

midwife in Oslo, Norway. | Karen Beate Nøsterud/norden.org via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.5 DK. "Who is there in this world but Mother? I am Mother, you are Mother, Mother is mine, Mother is yours, Everything is Mother." Traditional Baul Song from Bengal. Since 2012 I have walked thousands of miles throughout the United Kingdom and spoken with people around the world, asking them to share their experiences of love and connection. What are the loving narratives of their lives? What does love mean to them? As the journey has grown so the experiences have deepened, and the sharings with others have deepened too. What started as a personal jour... posted on May 14 2019 (5,551 reads)

rest of the world in order to protect her daughter in the way that she thought she could, and to protect herself, ultimately, from this enormous, inconceivable loss. And incrementally, we worked with that family for about a year and worked with that child right up until her death. And we have a team approach, so our entire team works together with that family. And that mother became an extraordinary teacher for us, in particular, because she was able to transform that anger and rage into love -- and into a place of peace and acceptance with her daughter's passing, even as extraordinarily painful as that was. And the ultimate shift that allowed her to do that was a shift from th... posted on Dec 31 1969 (144 reads)

rest of the world in order to protect her daughter in the way that she thought she could, and to protect herself, ultimately, from this enormous, inconceivable loss. And incrementally, we worked with that family for about a year and worked with that child right up until her death. And we have a team approach, so our entire team works together with that family. And that mother became an extraordinary teacher for us, in particular, because she was able to transform that anger and rage into love -- and into a place of peace and acceptance with her daughter's passing, even as extraordinarily painful as that was. And the ultimate shift that allowed her to do that was a shift from th... posted on Mar 16 2023 (2,554 reads)

time to upgrade our view of love. First and foremost, love is an emotion, a momentary state that arises to infuse your mind and body alike. Love, like all emotions, surfaces like a distinct and fast-moving weather pattern, a subtle and ever-shifting force. As for all positive emotions, the inner feeling love brings you is inherently and exquisitely pleasant -- it feels extraordinarily good, the way a long, cool drink of water feels when you’re parched on a hot day. Yet far beyond feeling good, a micro-moment of love, like other positive emotions, literally changes your mind. It expands your awareness of your surroundings, even your sense of self. The bound... posted on Dec 13 2014 (32,985 reads)

the way of life, someone must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate. This can only be done by projecting the ethic of love to the center of our lives.” Although Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. used Christian social ethics and the New Testament concept of “love” heavily in his writings and speeches, he was as influenced by Eastern spiritual traditions, Gandhi’s political writings, Buddhism’s notion of the interconnectedness of all beings, and Ancient Greek philosophy. His enduring ethos, at its core, is nonreligious — rather, it champions a set of moral, spiritual, and civic responsibilities that fortify our hum... posted on Jul 20 2015 (22,057 reads)

I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison. – Nelson Mandela To love our enemies does not mean that we suddenly become their friends. If it is our enemies we are to love, they must remain enemies. Unless you have enemies, you cannot love them. And if you have no enemies, I wonder if you have any friends. The moment you choose your friends, their enemies become your own enemies. By having convictions, we make ourselves the enemies of those who oppose these convictions. But let’s be sure we agree on what we mean by terms like Friend, E... posted on Apr 17 2017 (15,985 reads)

Perel was a therapist for 20 years before she began to write about sexuality. She studied Jewish identity in different national contexts, and focused on relationships between different minority groups in the U.S., the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. She grew up speaking multiple languages at home, above her family clothing shop in Antwerp in Belgium — a child of Polish Holocaust survivors. Both of her parents were the only people left of their families; they literally met and fell in love on a road out of the concentration camps and into freedom. Ms. Tippett:I start almost all of my conversations inquiring about the spiritual background of someone’s childhood. In my mind,... posted on Dec 18 2019 (10,434 reads)

Callander has a room of healthcare workers in tears when I hear her speak for the first time. I’m at the Gathering of Kindness—an annual conference founded by Dumbo Feather alumni Catherine Crock about bringing more empathy and compassion into healthcare—and Rachel is sharing the story of her daughter Evie, who was born with a rare chromosomal condition. Named Evie Amour, which for Rachel and her family means, “Life is possible because of love,” Evie was constantly in and out of hospitals for tests and procedures, and Rachel became attuned to the varying ways medical staff communicated her daughter’s condition to her. She s... posted on Jan 16 2022 (3,793 reads)

sculpture by Robert Indiana in New York. Photo from Wikimedia commons. Can love be a positive force for change in the public sphere as well as in our private lives? If not, Transformation is in trouble: openDemocracy’s new section has staked its future on demonstrating that radical changes are possible in politics and economics when approached in a spirit of human connection and solidarity.  At first glance, there’s an obvious problem with this thesis: can we really “love our enemies,” or even our friends and colleagues who we don’t know very well? Is there any scientific basis for believing that love can stretch beyond the boundaries of our ... posted on Oct 17 2013 (23,188 reads)