Everyday Buddhism: Making Everyday Better

I am delighted to have another conversation with James Crews, a return guest who is joining me for a conversation about his book, Unlocking the Heart: Writing for Mindfulness, Courage, and Self-Compassion.

James is the author of the essay collection, Kindness Will Save the World, and editor of several bestselling poetry anthologies, including The Wonder of Small Things (winner of the New England Book Award), Healing the Divide, The Path to Kindness (winner of the Nautilus Books for a Better Life Award), and How to Love the World, which has over 140,000 copies in print.

He has been featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, and in People Magazine, The Boston Globe, The New York Times Magazine, The Sun Magazine, and The Washington Post. He is the author of five prize-winning books of poetry, including Unlocking the Heart, and his poems have appeared in Ploughshares, The New Republic, and other journals.

James lives with his husband in the woods of Southern Vermont.

At the end of September, James surprised me with the gift of his book, Unlocking the Heart and what a gift it was! I'll talk more about it in our conversation, but the book really did help unlock my heart. During February and a time of reflection on my transformative experience after falling and time in the hospital in December, I worked with the book, reflecting on the poems and James' thoughts about them, and using the writing prompts to journal.

Being opened to vulnerability and held by the poems in the book was a special gift.

As you will no doubt hear, James is a gentle soul whose conversation about poetry, spirituality, and life is healing. Both the words he uses and the tender way he speaks them is a balm for our painful and anxious times.

Among other things, we talked about:

• How we are all poets …
• And, as James said, "We are all going around having moments and those moments are asking for expression.
  
  
• Our materially focused culture has caused us to be separated from spiritual practice and poetry can help us build a practice if we keep showing up.
  
  
• Writing poetry is about noticing and giving space to what you're noticing. Reading poetry trains you in the practice of noticing.

Take some time to ease into this episode. I promise you will be soothed and come away craving more poetry in your life….

This is a special episode announcing the release of my new book, as a Substack serial book:

Living Life As It Is: An Honest Narrative of My Challenges Practicing Right View

I started writing my second book in 2020. But along came the Covid-19 pandemic and so much after that. So here I am still writing what was to be my second book, focused on Right View. The stumbling block in getting it done was things in life kept changing faster and faster, and I had no idea whether I had any sense of Right View anymore or if I was helplessly lost in delusion. But I recently had an idea that would help me focus and share my writing in the midst of life and all its confusion and delusion—in the middle of life as it is.

The idea is this: Why not write this long-hoped-for second book in real time? Why not write for my Substack audience, releasing essays/chapters as I go so that you, kind subscribers, can read as I write—and comment too.

And that is what I've done. I published the first chapter on February 7, 2025 and plan to release a new essay/chapter every Friday. I thought I'd share that first chapter as a podcast episode and here it is ...

In this episode I talk with Nate Klemp, PhD. Nate is a bestselling author and formally trained philosopher. He is the author of the new book OPEN: Living With an Expansive Mind in a Distracted World. Nate is also the coauthor of the New York Times Editors’ Choice, The 80/80 Marriage: A New Model for a Happier, Stronger Marriage, and the New York Times Bestseller, Start Here: Master the Lifelong Habit of Wellbeing.

He has been featured in The LA Times, The New York Times, The Times London, and has appeared on Good Morning America and "Talks" at Google.

Nate co-founded the mindfulness training company Life Cross Training and holds a B.A. and M.A. in philosophy from Stanford University and a PhD from Princeton University.

I cannot think of a better guest to have on the podcast during these uncertain, catastrophic times. His new book, OPEN: Living With an Expansive Mind in a Distracted World is an important antidote to the ongoing trauma and division of the times. He offers the remedy of opening our minds and hearts despite our instinct to close them.

Stay tuned as we talk about:

• How we're living in a time of closure: closing in through our screens and closing to each other.
• "Annihilating the power of the smart phone."
• The practice of skillful closing when things get too intense.
• How our mindset is contagious and how it reinforces our environment of closure.
• How we talk to each other about politics in either "strategic mode" where we're trying to 'win' or "communication" mode where we're trying to understand.
• Non-drug psychedelic experience and psychedelic-assisted therapy.
• Mindfulness, meditation, and the practice of open-awareness (like Dzogchen) meditation. 

And more!

I'm sure you'll enjoy the conversation with Nate as much as I did. He is wise, funny, and a delightful conversation partner!

In this episode I invited Scott Snibbe to join me for a conversation about Buddhist responses to the anxiety, apprehension, insecurity, fear, dread, anger … and on and on … that some people are feeling now.

Scott Snibbe is a twenty-five-year student of Tibetan Buddhism whose teachers include Lama Zopa Rinpoche and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

He is the author and host of the How to Train a Happy Mind book and podcast. Scott leads meditation classes and retreats worldwide in a style that will become evident in our upcoming conversation. His light-hearted approach is infused with humor, science, and the realities of the modern world.

Scott is a new media artist whose installations have been incorporated into museums, public spaces, and performances. He has collaborated with musicians and filmmakers including Björk, Philip Glass, Beck, and James Cameron, and his work can be found in the collections of New York MoMA, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and other institutions.

Listen in as we talk about how the Dharma can help us see things as clear and non-reactive as possible. In this conversation, we talk about:

• The key to non-violent communications is listening.
• You don't have to agree with someone to understand them.
  
  
• The antidote to anger is curiosity.
  
  
• No matter what other people believe, each is driven by a desire for happiness.
  
  
• Radical acceptance and how acceptance IS transcendence.
  
  
• And so much more…

In this episode I talk with Natalie Baker. Natalie is a psychotherapist and Buddhist teacher, with more than 30 years of personal practice and 2+ decades of teaching experience. She is the founder of Neurofeedback Training Co. and a practicing psychotherapist in New York City, Natalie blends the wisdom of Buddhist psychology with modern therapeutic techniques, empowering individuals to navigate life's challenges with mindfulness, compassion, and resilience.

Natalie teaches from the strength of her own Buddhist practice, sharing the transformative power of mindfulness and meditation with others.

In addition to her psychotherapy practice, Natalie has been instrumental in bringing neurofeedback—a cutting-edge brain training technology—into the mainstream. Neurofeedback is often described as "meditation for the limbic brain", helping individuals achieve greater mental clarity and emotional stability by training the brain to self-regulate.

Stay tuned as we talk about some of my favorite subjects, including:

• Mindfulness and meditation
  
  
• Buddha Nature as basic goodness or fundamental sanity
  
  
• Finding the brilliance in the energy of fear
  
  
• Fearlessness and gentleness as key tools for self-healing and self-discovery
  
  
• Connecting with our warm heart

And more!