Zoe Nicholson
I Am Engaged
In October, 1982, I attended a meeting on Vajrayana Buddhism and stayed for 11 years and 11 months. As I age, the percentage of my lifetime spent there, gets smaller. Right now, it is 17% of my life. What eventually became apparent is that what happened in the ashram is not nearly as interesting as why I left and who I since have become. Unexpectedly, as of today, I have been on a Direct Path for 34% of my life. It is thrilling to watch that number grow, to still see the
John Erickson
WET: A DACAmented Journey by Alex Alpharaoh Review
Venturing to Atwater Village from anywhere that is not Atwater Village in Los Angeles can oftentimes be a long, arduous task. Traffic and other unforeseen forces always seem to make the journey unbearable. However, while traffic was, at times, awful, on the particular Friday night when I decided to venture east to the Ensemble Studio Theatre everything seemed to align just right. Had I known beforehand the experience that I was going to have at Alex Alpharaoh’s play WET: A
Sara Hof
Breaking the Nice
I just found out that the etymology for the word nice comes from the Latin word for stupid, which has, over time, morphed into a word for hospitality today. It’s nice to be pleasant, not be controversial, to be silent about the harder social and political topics. And that’s what I’m seeing from so many of my FB friends, coworkers, even myself. Niceness, a polite, silent niceness. Y’all know the silence – it’s the one that speaks all the things by not saying anything. Glos
Jawhara Tariq
Sex As a Woman is Never Carefree
65 million Americans are living with STIs. 1 in 4 Americans will get an STI in their lifetime. In a national survey of US physicians, less than one-third routinely screened patients for STIs. At least 80 percent of women will have contracted genital HPV by age 50. CDC screening recommendations only include women and gay or bisexual men. I remember the first time I found out I got an STI. I was 19 years old, my mother came up to my college dorm to take me out to lunch. As I go
Cary Klemmer
A Yogic Response to the State of Things: Commentary on Charlottesville
On Saturday August 13, 2017 Heather Heyer was murdered by a violent extremist. She was struck by a speeding vehicle driven through a crowd of counter protestors. Heather was standing in opposition to a march of the “alt-right,” a euphemism for violent extremists whom found their beliefs in fascist anti-Semitic rhetoric. In my understating, Heather was killed while standing in prayer, praying that society become open to understanding, to an understanding of self, others, and t
John Erickson
My Turn
If you’re anything like me, you’re looking for an escape as of late. From The Handmaid’s Tale, to The Keepers, and ultimately the latest season of House of Cards, it seems like everything that is and can be absorbed by our eyes via the digital screens in our pockets to at home are bleak representations of the reality we are all longing to escape. The new season of House of Cards is much like ones in previous season: Frank and Claire Underwood get themselves into some type of
Martha Cecilia Ovadia
Resources and action in the wake of the Charlottesville Terrorist Attack
The entire team at Engaged Gaze is at a loss for words over the tragic events in Charlottesville last night. While we do not have solutions, we want to create a working page with resources for our readers. Our hearts are with all those affected by the domestic terrorist attack yesterday. Heather Heyer, rest in power. You will not be forgotten. Before we go on, we want to acknowledge Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe. His words were stronger than any others we heard yesterday
Jessica Salmans
A Man in Arkansas Broke All Ten Commandments — and it was Patriotic AF
I grow weary that we are still having this argument as a nation, so let me help people out: The Separation of Church and State is a REAL thing. I say this to you without hesitation of any kind--as a woman who was raised in church and who, as an adult, hasn’t yet abandoned it entirely. I respect religion. I respect faith. I understand why it matters. I strongly advocate for everyone’s personal, individual right to practice the faith of their choosing so long as they break no
Anjeanette LeBoeuf
Wonder Moana
It seems like this past year has been filled with equally impressive and horrible things. Two of the bright rays of hope are of two films, one animated and the other a superhero. Yes, I am talking about Disney’s Moana and Warner Brothers’ Wonder Woman. Disney’s Moana was released in 2016 and broke all sorts of records; having a Polynesian ethnic Princess and the first Disney Princess film to not have a love interest. Moana makes a full turn for Disney; many would state that t
Zoe Nicholson
I am a Sanctuary Person
I have not talked about it much. It is not something I like amplifying. It would not help me or anyone. Like so many, since November 8, my light has been flickering. I suppose I don’t like talking about things which have no active solution. Shouting at the television, “BUT WHAT do we do about it?” is not constructive. We are in a loop of diagnosis. Office to office, specialist to specialist; we go saying well I don’t really care what it is, just get rid of it. It is growing.
