Monthly Conversations

Interviews with Social Artists, Uncommon Heroes

May 1, 2012

From the Editor

Richard Whittaker

Welcome to newsletter issue #23. We bring you an unusual selection of material that's more than just suitable for inner reflection, it's real food for thought. Long ago I discovered that interviews had the potential for carrying more substance than just about any other form of writing. Too often, of course, what we get is a surface treatment meant just for passing time. But these are like hidden treasures. Each one is remarkable in its own way, reflecting as it does, the wisdom of three individuals who have spent a lifetime engaged in passionate callings. One wonders how much other material of similar quality never reaches us and remains hidden under the media wash of quick and easy entertainment. [more]

More Conversations

• Interview: Gail Needleman
• Rue Harrison: The Jungle of Montini
• Seven Sunsets

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A Man Named Tree

A man named Tree says he's always gone against the grain. Instead of cultivating an ambition to get ahead, he has always wanted to help others. I asked him how far back this feeling went. He told he never imagined anything but doing service. His earliest memory is of having the idea of working on a medical ship that went around to different countries helping people. The Free Farm in San Francisco is the flowering of decades of Tree's work. It's his joy and way of giving. The secret of a good life, he says, is very simple. 'Get your mind off yourself and be good to others.' Read more about this remarkable man.

Tracy Cochran: Girl with Suitcase and a Dream

Tracy Cochran, executive editor of Parabola magazine shares a remarkable experience in this interview and some of her wisdom: 'It's really quite natural for many of us to approach our spiritual practice as a way to get away from difficult or disappointing material. But I very slowly learned, and I want to emphasize slowly, over decades, that the direction of freedom is to turn towards, very gently. I remember meeting Thich Nhat Hanh and he talked about, if you feel angry or a burst of impatience, to hold that feeling like a child. And I've learned very slowly, that this works. Not going into the story and siding with yourself, but just holding your material, whatever it is.'