Our band of apes has managed to bob and weave past all the obstacles, both internal and external we have faced these past million years. Knowing we have overcome impossible odds again and again, I have managed to remain hopeful — that whatever we may face, we will find a workaround. We are unprecedentedly industrious critters whose continuing existence demonstrates our ability to surmount monumental challenges. … More Hope
We are all sinners, hypocritically humiliating our fellow sinners, and just as they should be spared, so should we spare ourselves. Compassion is within the reach of all of us (save those pesky psychopaths), nurture it, celebrate it, and share it, most especially with yourself. … More Compassion
One of the most fulfilling jobs I’ve ever had was creating and teaching a film production course at an otherwise scammy for-profit film school. One of the many reasons I got fired was that I upset a group of christian students with my 2-3 hour opening lecture in which I described my own personal journey, … More Unity
I believe this end point of Holly Days, Redemption, is also the actual psychological endpoint of the archetypal hero’s journey, and I love well-motivated antagonist redemption arcs. Rey is finally old enough that I am able to introduce her to the joys of being a cineaste. We’ve seen a couple of beautiful animated movies together … More Redemption
Here on New Years Eve, the penultimate Holly Day we consider Forgiveness. I sleep less soundly at my age, and am often awakened by intense emotions elicited by a moment in a dream. Last night I was dreaming about helping some boys at a playground who were trying to hop onto a spinning merry go … More Forgiveness
This final trinity is kind of the key to universal peace — peace ranging from the closest one-on-one intimate relationships to global warfare, this ancient formula: atonement, forgiveness, redemption has almost always been the only escape. This year I have to address that tragic miasma of the war in the Holy Land. But first, an … More Atonement
For Courage today I am reposting another 10 year old tale of an accidental coming-of-age ritual my two BFF’s and I managed to complete as teenagers. In this 3rd trinity, which is not really attached to any traditional holiday, we have used Truth Love and Courage, as these constitute the totality of my belief system. … More Courage
I doubt if even my great grandkids will get all the way back to my earliest posts, copied onto an archive page here from facebook posts, which was the way I began this practice of daily posts. Ten years ago, most of my posts were anecdotes, and some important ones about pivotal moments in my … More Love
I’ve commented in previous posts that Holly Days is quartet of trinities, but have never fully deconstructed its serendipitous symmetry. There is something about groups of three that we humans seem to appreciate, with the holy trinity, troikas, our political balance of power, and trilogies being common forms in literature and film. Similar serendipities have … More Truth
My practice of daily Holly Days posts always gets harder in the “Christmas taint” (a term I just learned from Twitter) as the wonderfulness fades. Part of my process is to reread my old posts for the day, partly to avoid being too repetitive (at which I often fail), and I was struck by my … More Gratitude
HOLLY DAYS 