“It’s all a question of story. We are in trouble now because we do not have a good story. We’re in between stories. The old story, the account of how the world came to be and how we fit into it, is no longer effective. Yet we have not learned the new story.” — Thomas Berry, from his essay, “The New Story” in his seminal book, The Dream of the Earth.

Cosmology is the foundation of all of my community organizing work particularly as it relates the power of story, the power of art and the power of activism to transform our world and create a more just and sustainable future. I am passionate about awakening wonder in our world and providing communities with a cosmological perspective on our human existence — a counter-narrative — that fosters a deeper sense of meaning, purpose and value within the hearts and minds of humans both individually and collectively. I see the interrelationship of art, media, and storytelling as modern-day mythmaking and therefore I am committed to the art and science of marketing, creative placemaking, and the presentation of art for the purposes of building healthy and vibrant communities.

“Celebration is the key to human energies.” — Thomas Berry

“Myth is the secret opening through with the inexhaustible energies of the cosmos pour into human cultural manifestations.” — Joseph Campbell

“The first function of a mythology is to waken and maintain in the individual a sense of wonder and participation in the mystery of this finally inscrutable universe.” – Joseph Campbell

I have been a student of the work of Thomas Berry since I was high school student in North Carolina in the late 1980s and was lucky to have the opportunity to become his friend and mentee over the last 19 years of his amazing life until he passed away in 2009 at the age of 94. For more background and perspective on Berry and my thinking, here is an essay I wrote about my experience studying with Berry in Assisi, Italy in the early 1990s.

Collecting music for months on end and occasionally a great podcast like this.