I refer to a blog post I wrote last year that referenced Kristen Neff’s research on self-compassion. That article is here and the reference is in the section called “Step Two: Flip the Script.”

I’d also like to acknowledge some of the other wise teachers whose work has helped shape my ideas. They include Rev. angel Kyodo williams, Michael Meade, Bo Forbes, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Acharya Shunya, Mirabai Starr, Leonard Schlain, bell hooks, Brené Brown, Ibram X Kendi, Jason Reynolds, Liz Gilbert, Bessel van der Kolk, my own children and sisters and friends, and more. One way I’m trying to be less white supremacist in my thinking is to notice when I’m feeling like “I did this all myself!” and instead stop to recognize the many people whose voices and efforts have informed my own. I stand on the shoulders of many. Lifting oneself up by one’s bootstraps is not possible nor advisable.