Compassion is a beautiful word.  Literally it is ‘com’ (with) ‘passion’ (suffering).  To be with someone in the face of difficulty, challenge and the mystery that is human suffering. In our 21st Century world, there are many things that ‘compete’ for our compassion, whether it be emotional television appeals of hardships in other places, the … More Compassion

I’ve been journeying now with the Northumbria Community for many years.  It is a dispersed new monastic community, which has a ‘mother house’ here in Northumberland, but the majority of the  community live in their own settings in different countries of the world.  We live by a rule of Availability and Vulnerability (full rhythm of … More Availability and Vulnerability

In some of my more reflective moments over the last few weeks, especially when thinking of my re-entry into the world of work and ‘normal’, the poetic words of a friend, Peter Neary Chaplin, have spoken powerfully and challengingly to me.  The poem, ‘The Understudy’ is a story where the ‘main actor’ gets sick and … More The Understudy