“All conditioned things are impermanent. When one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.” — Dhammapada 277
These past few days have been filled with heartbreak. Hundreds have died in Nepal, and thousands are still missing. Families wait for news about their loved ones as rescue workers search through mud, rubble, and ruined river valleys.
In the face of suffering like this, it is hard to know what to say. Sometimes words feel too small, and explanations can even hurt. Often, our first duty is just to grieve with those who are grieving.
Yesterday, Sufi mystic and teacher Sadhguru gathered with his followers for an event that was originally planned as a spiritual teaching. After the flood, it turned into a show of solidarity. Some pilgrims traveling with his Foundation are still missing.
At the gathering, Sadhguru talked about how fragile life is and how important it is to live fully while we can, echoing an old teaching from Tibetan Buddhism called the Four Reminders, or the Four Thoughts That Turn the Mind.
These ideas are not comforting in the usual way. They do not say that everything happens for a reason or that suffering is God’s will. Instead, they ask us to face the reality of being alive.
The first reminder is that human life is precious.
That teaching feels unbearable when so many lives have just been lost. Somewhere in Nepal, a family would give anything for one more ordinary morning with someone who is gone. One more cup of tea. One more argument about something inconsequential. One more chance to say, “I love you,” or “I’m sorry,” or simply, “I’ll see you tonight.”
We spend so much of our lives waiting for life to begin. We wait for work to calm down, for the kids to grow up, for the political crisis to end, or for when we finally have enough time.
The Four Reminders urge us to stop putting off being present.
The second reminder is about impermanence. Everything changes, even the things and people we love. Death does not wait for an invitation.
The Buddhist tradition does not ask us to contemplate death so that we become frightened of living. It asks us to remember death so that we finally become available to life.
Even mountains are impermanent. The Himalayas seem eternal to us, since our lives are short, but they are actually living geological systems. Ice shifts, rocks break, glaciers shrink, and rivers change course. Scientists are still figuring out how much climate change affected this disaster, but the warming Himalayas are making glacier hazards more dangerous and harder to predict.
Which brings us to the third reminder: karma. In Western culture, karma is often seen as a kind of cosmic payback: if you do something bad, the universe will get you back. But the real teaching is more serious. Our actions have consequences, and we help shape the future by what we do now.
The carbon we release matters. The forests we cut down matter. The energy systems we create matter. It matters if governments share scientific data, if communities have early-warning systems, and if neighboring countries work together.
Compassion cannot just stay as a feeling. Sooner or later, it needs to become action through engineering, policy, rescue teams, climate adaptation, shared data, and governments working together.
The fourth reminder is about samsara, the cycles of suffering we keep repeating because we cannot picture living in a new way.
Maybe this is where the teaching becomes most urgent for us. We know the climate is changing. We know the Himalayas are getting warmer. Millions of people live downstream from glaciers and mountains that are becoming less stable. Yet, countries that share these mountains and rivers are still caught up in political rivalries that make it hard to work together.
Water does not care about those divisions.
A flood that starts on one side of a border does not stop to show documents before crossing over.
Maybe the mountains are reminding us of something our politics often forgets: we already belong to each other.
We share the atmosphere. We share watersheds. We share the climate. More and more, our survival will be shared too.
The Four Reminders do not help us avoid grief. Instead, they invite us to go deeper into it, until grief turns into compassion.
Life is precious, so cherish it.
Life is impermanent, so be here for it.
Our actions have consequences, so take responsibility for what we set in motion.
Suffering continues when we keep repeating what causes it, so have the courage to make a change.
Today, families in Nepal are waiting for loved ones who may never return. They do not need spiritual explanations. They need our compassion, our prayers, our help, and, in time, a world that is willing to learn from this tragedy.
Tomorrow morning, most of us will wake up to another ordinary day. Let us realize what an extraordinary gift that is. And may we use it well.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
If you truly remembered that this life is precious and impermanent, what would you give more of your attention to today?
Where are you experiencing the consequences of choices, personal or collective, that were made years or generations ago? What responsibility does that create for the choices you make now?
What pattern of suffering in your life, community, or our shared world are you being asked to stop repeating?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer For Those Waiting in Nepal
Holy Mystery, Today our hearts turn toward Nepal. We hold the families who are waiting for news, the parents searching for children, the children searching for parents, and all those sitting beside an empty chair wondering whether the person they love will ever come home. We remember those who died. Each one carried a whole world within them. They had people they loved, work left unfinished, plans for tomorrow, stories only they could tell. May their memory be held tenderly. Be with those searching through mud and rubble. Strengthen rescue workers, medical teams, neighbors, monks, spiritual communities, government officials and ordinary people who have become caregivers because the moment demanded it of them. And be with those whose grief is only beginning. May we resist the temptation to explain their suffering from a distance. Help us instead to accompany it. The mountains remind us that we are temporary. The rivers remind us that we are connected. The changing climate reminds us that our actions travel farther than we imagine. Give us the courage to live accordingly. May our awareness of death make us more alive. May our grief deepen our compassion. May our compassion become action. And may the suffering of this moment awaken in us a greater commitment to protect this beautiful, fragile world and one another. Amen
Spiritual Practice: The Four Reminders For One Ordinary Day
After you read this, put your phone down and sit somewhere quietly for a few minutes. You do not need to meditate correctly. You do not need incense, special music, or an enlightened facial expression. Just sit.
Then move slowly through the Four Reminders.
Begin with precious life. Look around you. Notice where you are. Feel your body breathing. Think of one person you love. Let yourself register the astonishing fact that both of you are alive at the same time. Say quietly: This life is precious.
Then remember impermanence. Bring to mind something you love without frightening yourself with thoughts of losing it. Simply acknowledge that it will change. You will change. The people you love will change. Nothing gets to remain exactly as it is. Say: This will not last forever.
Then consider cause and effect. Think about one choice you will make today whose consequences will travel beyond today. It might involve money, energy, food, transportation, work, a relationship, your community, or the Earth. Ask yourself: What am I setting in motion?
Finally, consider the cycles of suffering. Notice one pattern you keep participating in even though you know it does not lead where you want to go. Perhaps it is overwork, consumption, anger, avoidance, resentment, compulsive news-checking, or silence when something needs to be said. Don’t condemn yourself for it. Simply ask: What would happen if I stopped feeding this?
Then get up and live your ordinary day. Drink the coffee. Feed the animals. Answer the email. Drive to work. Call someone you love.
The practice isn’t intended to make the day more solemn. It is meant to make the day more alive.
Somewhere tonight, someone in Nepal would give almost anything for one more ordinary Tuesday with someone they love.
We have been given ours.
Let us be here for it.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
My team and I launched a new experiment we are calling “The Commons.” It’s an online space centered around communities of practice: groups of people who share a common concern, set of problems, or passion for a topic, and deepen their knowledge and expertise by interacting on an ongoing basis. Join the community here.
September 1, 2026, 12:30-1:30pmET - Book Club in The Commons - FREE - We are reading our next book, “I Eat The Stars” by Sarah Wilson. We will meet each Tuesday for 6 weeks. It’s such great fun. I hope you will be a part. All are welcome! RSVP HERE.
September 8, 2026, 12:30 - 1:30pm ET, ONLINE EVENT with NY Times Best-Selling author and journalist, Sarah Wilson!!! Sarah has just published her latest book I Eat The Stars: How to Live Fully and Beautifully in a Collapsing World. Join us for this one hour conversation where we will talk with Sarah about how we face collapse, how we find beauty and who we can become in these challenging times. Scholarships are available. REGISTER HERE.
September 8, 2026, 7-9pm ET, ONLINE EVENT - I’ll be hosting a powerful online gathering on The Black Madonna: Sacred Wisdom for a World in Crisis with Matthew Fox, Alessandra Belloni, and Christena Cleveland. We will explore the Black Madonna as a symbol of resilience, liberation, sacred feminine wisdom, and healing in a fractured world through conversation, story, music, and spiritual reflection. If you feel drawn toward a deeper encounter with the Divine Feminine and the ancient traditions that continue to nourish movements for justice and wholeness, I hope you’ll join us. Learn more and REGISTER HERE.
September 14, 7-8:30pm ET ONLINE EVENT - I’m delighted to share that Dr. Margaret Wheatley is releasing a newly updated edition of her beloved book Perseverance: A Companion for the Journey this October. Written for those committed to serving the world with compassion in difficult times, the book offers daily wisdom and practical guidance for navigating grief, anger, exhaustion, and uncertainty while remaining rooted in love, courage, and presence. Meg and I will be in conversation to explore what perseverance looks like in this moment of history and how we can sustain ourselves for the long work ahead. I hope you’ll join us for what promises to be a deeply meaningful conversation. REGISTER HERE.
September 17, 2026, 7-8:45pm ET - I will be joining Jackie Sussman for an online session on practicing eidetics as a part of our “Reclaiming the Power of Imagination” monthly series. Eidetic Imagery is a powerful tool for pastors, denominational leaders, coaches, and spiritual directors working with others, and for individuals seeking deeper integration and healing in their own lives. Jackie is a psychotherapist, author, and leading expert in Eidetic Image Psychology, and has spent over forty years helping leaders and individuals unlock creativity, uncover hidden strengths, and move through limiting patterns. During this session, she will lead a live Eidetic process shaped by mythic imagery, offering a direct experience of the work. REGISTER HERE.
October 6, 2026 - 7-8:30pm ET, ONLINE EVENT - Matthew Fox and I are teaming up again to launch a series called Journeying with the Mystics. The mystics have always emerged in times of uncertainty. They appear when old certainties are crumbling, when institutions no longer provide easy answers, and when people find themselves longing for a deeper experience of the Sacred. Join us for an 18-session exploration of the teachings of St. John of the Cross, Thomas Merton, Hildegard of Bingen, Kabir and Rumi, Meister Eckhart and more. This is more than a lecture series. It is an invitation into a living spiritual journey. REGISTER for the first session HERE!
October 18-21, 2026 - PREACH! 2026 Conference- I’ll be co-hosting PREACH in Minneapolis with Church Anew, a new gathering for preachers, storytellers, worship leaders, and spiritual communicators navigating what it means to speak with clarity, compassion, and courage in a changing world. If you’ve sensed that the preaching moment has changed and are longing for thoughtful community and renewed imagination for this work, I hope you’ll join us.
November 10, 7-8:30pm ET - I’ll be joined by theologian, writer, and professor Dr. Debra Rienstra for a special ONLINE conversation on Refugia Faith. In ecology, refugia are small places where life survives amid disruption, pockets of resilience from which life can eventually regenerate and spread. Debra invites us to consider what this might mean spiritually in an age of climate instability, political turmoil, institutional decline, and profound uncertainty. What if our congregations, communities, relationships, and even our own lives could become refugia, places where courage, compassion, beauty, wisdom, and possibility are protected and cultivated for whatever comes next? I hope you’ll join us for this timely and deeply hopeful conversation. REGISTRATION COMING SOON!
Fun Things My Friends Are Up To…
I get to work with such amazing, creative people. This section is my way of celebrating them—no paid promotions, just joy in what they’re creating.
My dear friend, Rev. Shawna Bowman has just launched a new podcast with musician Jennifer Knapp called “My Wise Friend Podcast.” They talk about it this way: “You might know Jennifer from her years as a touring musician and songwriter, weaving stories and songs together across the country. You might know Shawna from their work as an artist, speaker, and community leader exploring the intersection of spirituality, justice, and creativity. While our daily work looks different, we share a deep love for real talk, deep questions, and finding wisdom in unexpected places.” I am so excited about this! I hope you will check it out and support them. https://www.patreon.com/cw/mywisefriendpodcast
I’m delighted to celebrate the upcoming release of Wisdom Church: Abundant Life for Aging Congregations by my colleague, Rev. Dr. Anna Hall. Rather than seeing aging congregations as communities in decline, Anna invites us to recognize them as communities rich with wisdom, purpose, and possibility. Her book offers a hopeful vision for moving beyond anxiety about the future and embracing the unique gifts of older adults as beloved children of God. If your congregation is navigating these questions, this is a resource well worth reading. You can preorder the Kindle edition now, with delivery on August 17: https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Church-Abundant-Aging-Congregations-ebook/dp/B0HBXGYTWC
Starting again on September 7 for every Monday, 12pm ET - ONLINE WRITING GROUP - My dear friend, Meryl Marshall-Daniels, is leading a writing group open to all. This is a simple and spacious writing circle for people who want time to listen inwardly and put words on the page without overthinking, performing, or polishing. Meryl offers a prompt designed to invite reflection, imagination, and attunement to what is already alive within you. The practice honors writing as a way of listening, of letting images, memories, questions, and insights surface in their own time. Learn more here.
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.
Thank you, Rev. Cameron. Words to ponder, live by, and live by so more.