Some Thoughts on Water: photo - r. whittaker As an experiment, a few years ago I began asking friends if they had any memorable experiences with water. I was surprised by the blank looks I got.      “Do you remember any experiences of swimming or playing with water when you were a child?” I'd ask.      That question worked a little better.      “Oh, yes! When I was a child my parents always took us to a cabin on a lake on summer vacations. I remember swimming there.”      “So is that ... Feb 22, 2021, 3371 reads

A Miracle Cure: Interview with Richard Lueker, M.D. I met cardiologist Richard Lueker at Karma Kitchen one Sunday afternoon in Berkeley where he was doing service as a volunteer waiter. The moment I'd stepped into the restaurant, that day's volunteer maitre d', Viral Mehta, said, "It's great that you showed up today. We were going to call you because there's someone here we want you to meet. Be sure to ask him about his story."       I looked around the restaurant—always lively on the Sunday afternoons it's taken over by Karma Kitchen volunteers—and ... Dec 25, 2009, 124715 reads

Threshold Choir: An Interview with Kate Munger: February 27, 2010 Inverness, California As I drove up to Inverness on a Saturday morning a light rain fell intermittently and as I neared town, the clouds began to break up a little. Turning off Sir Francis Drake soon I was on Vision Road. Following my jotted notes, the roads became smaller and then the pavement ended. I faced a steep dirt road and wondered if the car could manage it in the rain. And where was I? The car did climb the road and it wasn't long before I was walking up a driveway hidden among the moss-covered trees.       I first heard about Kate Munger and the Threshold Choir ... Apr 17, 2010, 38695 reads

Conversation with Denise Zabalaga: We Are All the Other June 19 2008 San Rafael Photojournalist Denise Zabalaga grew up in Switzerland with her Italian mother and Bolivian father. Italian and Spanish were spoken at home. When Denise was sent to school she didn’t know the German spoken there, an experience that gave her a lifelong feeling for, and identification with, the outsider. The experience brought with it the gift of being free from the projection of fear and mistrust upon the stranger. Instead of fear, Zabalaga has a deep interest in people of other cultures and has been able to look past the media coverage of the ... Jul 6, 2008, 19573 reads

Annalena's Painting Advice: A tutorial from Leigh Hyams' granddaughter Leigh Hyams sent me the following notes. —Richard Whittaker "I found this script today in a forgotten portfolio. It was dictated to me by my four-year old granddaughter, Annalena, who could not write then, but she knew how to advise people to paint and draw. I like her advice enormously, not to mention her attitude..." — Leigh Hyams, San Miguel Allende, Mexico Excerpts from Annalena's advice on painting and drawing:  • Take some paint, some colors, and with your paintbrush, put one color on your paper and take another color on top. Mix it ... Feb 10, 2009, 9933 reads

Make a Living, Make a Life: John Evans Even in this world of computers and the global economy people still make dinner for their friends, have children, walk on the beach at sunset, share stories, start businesses. (If the truth be told, the global economy is more like an empire where everyone does what they have always done but with a little less money, and more of our money goes to fewer and fewer people.)      People start businesses for basically two reasons: to make money or to make a living. Money is one of the most confusing creations that we have ever gotten tangled up in. Most people need it, ... Oct 17, 2007, 25343 reads

When There Is No Language, Speak Kindness: Perhaps, you also grew up with this notion: that to be of value, it has to be big.  And what if that notion is not true? What if it is the seemingly small actions that are in fact, of great value? What if these seemingly small actions are what connect us one to another and open the gateway to deeper understanding? When there is no language, speak kindness. Remember in the before time, when we could touch? And when we could travel? For a few minutes I’d like to take you back to that time….  My seat mate on the overnight flight from ... Aug 23, 2021, 4411 reads

Conversation: Emmanuel Vaughn-Lee: Deep Water   Most of us in the west take clean water for granted. And generally we're equally asleep to the profound role water plays in our lives. In an interview with Sam Bower of greenmuseum.org [issue #18] I brought up the question of water. He mused, "If you think of what we are, I mean we're made up of cells and each little cell contains a drop of seawater. In some ways, all the little creatures that emerged from the seas found each other, bound together and found a way of collaborating and sharing the recipe over and over with helpful modifications, and here we are ... Jun 13, 2011, 52817 reads

A Conversation with Joan Di Stefano: The Action of Light It was a Saturday open house at John Toki’s Leslie Ceramics, a mecca for Bay Area clay artists of all kinds—an all-day affair with demonstrations, exhibitors, raffle prizes, hot dogs, socializing and the good cheer that seems to accompany all those who work with clay. John had given me my own table to display copies of works & conversations. There must have been ten or fifteen such tables and people had been circulating, cross-pollinating and having a good time. And now the party was starting to wind down.          ... May 11, 2012, 109409 reads

Three Hours of Free Time in Berkeley: I dropped my wife off at SF’s International Airport and headed home for two weeks of life on my own. While she was in Macedonia visiting medieval Greek Orthodox churches to study icons, I’d try to find some adventures of my own. I’d already thought of one. It involved a chore I’d been putting off for weeks—taking our car to the dealer for routine maintenance. The very next day on a chilly overcast morning in downtown Berkeley, I found myself standing at a counter in the dealer’s service bay. It was 8:30 a.m. I noticed the man writing ... May 17, 2022, 2105 reads