Enlightened-ish Friday Buzz: What’s Inspiring Me This Week

I’m working on a new book about my quest to find a god I can believe in—one that feels real in a world that often doesn’t. This search, and book, is as much about doubt as it is about faith. It’s a messy, gritty process with dead ends, quiet revelations, and a lot of questioning along the way. In that spirit, I’ve pulled together this list, a mix of what’s been shaking up my perspective lately and pushing me to dig deeper. It’s not clean or easy, but this journey is neither.

YouTube Video I’m Watching (and Rewatching): Windfall of Grace(Directed by Anjali Singh)

Lately, I’ve been trying to lean more on a quiet sense of presence, letting it guide me toward something real. I’ve been watching and rewatching Windfall of Grace, a documentary that peels back the layers of Neem Karoli Baba’s life. He’s the guru who transformed many lives, including Ram Dass’s. There’s something profoundly simple yet mystifying about being in the presence of a great teacher, even one who’s been dead for 50 years—no words, no instruction, just that silent transmission of energy that shifts something inside.

This documentary has become a spiritual practice for me. It’s helping me reconnect with what feels authentic, with that essence that speaks to a part of me that’s been seeking for so long. It reminds me that sometimes God doesn’t appear in explanations or sermons but in that quiet, unspoken presence.

Watch it on YouTube here:

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Spiritual Book I’m Reading: Godmen of India by Peter Brent

India is back on my mind this week. It seems to call to me whenever I’m on the edge of a breakthrough—or breakdown. I’ve been diving into Godmen of India by Peter Brent, and it’s been stirring something in me. Brent explores the raw, unfiltered encounters between Westerners and Eastern spiritual teachers, like the kind we rarely see today. There’s no fixing, no self-help mantras—just presence. Just darshan, where you sit with a guru and absorb their energy, trusting that something more significant is happening even if you can’t fully understand it.

This book brings me face-to-face with my longing for a deeper connection, a God I can sit with in silence without needing to explain or fix anything. It’s about absorbing the moment, absorbing the mystery. Sometimes, that’s all faith is—a willingness to sit in the unknown and trust that something is there.

Get it here.

Writing Craft Book I’m Rereading: The Situation and the Story by Vivian Gornick

As I think about how to tell my story—how to tell this messy, complicated search for God—I’ve been revisiting Vivian Gornick’s The Situation and the Story. She reminds us that storytelling isn’t just recounting facts. It’s about digging into the emotional truth beneath the surface. It’s about pulling out the essence of an experience and laying it bare.

Gornick talks about a student giving a eulogy to their doctor. Instead of just listing accomplishments, the student weaves their own life into the doctor’s story. That synergy is what makes the eulogy come alive. That’s what I want for my writing—to pull out the emotional threads and let them breathe.

Get it here.

A Quote I’m Pondering: Jonathan Pageau on Symbols

Symbols have always fascinated me because they speak to something deeper. Jonathan Pageau talks about how symbols help us see the invisible patterns that shape our reality:

“Symbols help us see the invisible patterns that govern the world. They transform our perception, allowing us to engage with reality more profoundly. Through symbols, we are invited to see the world not just as matter, but as imbued with purpose and meaning.”

This is a reminder that finding God might not come through logic or reason but through seeing life differently—seeing the purpose in the chaos and the meaning behind the material. Symbols are a gateway to that deeper reality I’ve been searching for all along.

Memoir Tip I’ve Been Speaking with My Students About: Finding Your Voice

Your writing voice, like your spiritual voice, emerges when you stop trying to sound like someone else and start tapping into your truth. I’ve told my students that writing, like spirituality, isn’t about forcing it. It’s about letting it rise naturally from your experiences, from those deeper currents you’re often unaware of.

Strong verbs, vivid descriptions, sensory details—that’s where the truth is. And when you find it, it’s unmistakable.

Class I’m Teaching: The Soul of Your Story: Intro to Memoir Writing

In my memoir class, which kicks off next week, I’ll help writers uncover the deeper layers of their stories. We’ll explore the first and last chapters of your memoir, the bookends that often hold the most weight. This isn’t just about writing—it’s about understanding your journey, finding the patterns in your life, and, hopefully, uncovering the bigger picture that ties it all together.

Spiritual Tip on My Tongue: Nature as a Portal to Soul

As I work on my next book, I’ve reflected on how nature often holds the key to seeing beyond the surface world. In one chapter of my memoir, Into the Soul of the World: My Journey to Healing (Hachette, 2023), I wrote about how paying attention to the natural world opened my eyes to something bigger. I saw the world differently: hawks perched on the same tree, turtles sunning themselves by the creek—things I’d never noticed before suddenly became vibrant, alive. It was as if the world showed me its hidden soul, and I was finally ready to see it.

I believe that’s how we can begin to understand God—not by searching but by noticing—by being open to what’s already there, waiting to be seen.

Find my book here.

That’s where I’m at this week—deep in reflection, trying to make sense of this journey toward finding a God I can believe in. Thanks for walking alongside me.