Coworkers, dollar bills, and unconditional generosity

This question doesn't come from the SoulPancake book; it came from a coworker as sort of an off-hand attempt at conversation. But for one reason or another, the question has stuck with me for the past week, and my inability to find an answer has been concerning me.  "What's your favorite childhood memory?" I have a lot of wonderful childhood memories -- building a tree house with my dad, family vacations to my grandparent's house in Tennessee, moving my brother into his college dorm -- but choosing a favorite has proved to...

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Old age, memory loss, and blank picture frames

Today's question comes from the SoulPancake website. "Do you fear aging?" This is a topic I try not to think about, and for that reason I believe it points to a very obvious answer: yes, I'm scared of aging. But who isn't? Growing old means losing the ability to do things that we take for granted every day -- walking, breathing, or simply writing a sentence becomes a laborious task. Not to mention the loss of memory, which scares me most of all. I believe that our character is shaped by the experiences we have in life. Our memory of...

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Natural rights, John Locke, and inherent goodness

This question comes from pages 182 and 183 of the SoulPancake book.  "What can you do to make this world a little less screwed up?" The world is a tough place -- everyone knows that. Over time, we've allowed our religions, beliefs, opinions, and sexuality to cloud the fact that we are ultimately all members of the same species. English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) maintained that, while...

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God, religion, and the search for truth

Today's question comes from pages 140 and 141 of the SoulPancake book.  "What do you do when you can't wrap your head around certain teachings in your religion?" Last night, two friends and I were at a bar chatting. Somehow or another, our conversation drifted into the topic of religion and faith, and I asked my friend Jaxon why he was a Christian. When most Christians answer this question, their response...

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Can men and women really be "just friends"?

Today's topic comes from page 80 and 81 of the SoulPancake book, and it's a question that resonates with me in a very real way. The only way I can answer this is by bringing my best friend, Leslie, into the picture. Sorry in advance, Les. Leslie and I met about 8 years ago -- she was in 7th grade and I was in 6th. These were our awkward, My Chemical Romance, "cut my wrists and black my eyes" days. We had issues...

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SoulPancake, and the struggle for creative inspiration

If you read the title of this post, you're probably wondering what in the hell SoulPancake is. Well, in an extremely small nutshell, SoulPancake is a project that attempts to make people "chew on life's big questions." Do we need religion? Why do we hate? What does art have to do with the soul? What do you do when you can't wrap your head around certain teachings in your religion? These are a just a few of the questions...

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Mason Jar Lamp

Today, I had a sudden burst of creative energy. I cleaned and rearranged my room, and then decided, "Hell, let's make a lamp." So I did. Before we get to the pictures, though, a little back story: A few months ago while I was out shopping with a friend of mine, we wandered into a store called Cotton On. Their clothes are awesome, and I bought a few things, but that's not what we're here for. Overhead, just outside the...

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