A Conversation With Writer and Lay Zen Teacher Sara Campbell

Welcome to Solvitur Ambulando, which means "Solve It By Walking." On this journey, we explore the alchemic potency of walking for sorting through life's puzzles, exploring our world, and transforming ourselves. Like a good walk, you will encounter distinctive ideas, remarkable people and gorgeous scenery. I hope you will enjoy a beautiful walk today. And if you like what you read and hear, pleaseToday I am joined by one of my favorite writers, one of my favorite people – Sara Campbell. How to describe Sara? Writer, coach, marketing executive, Zen Buddhist practitioner and now lay teacher, we met through the writing collective called Foster. Meeting her in person during a Foster retreat highlighted that experience.I view Sara as one of the few people peering deep into the heart of modern society, facing it honestly, and reflecting back something worthy of our attention. Her Substack, Tiny Revolutions, is on my short list of must-reads as soon as a new issue comes out. To me, most importantly she is a friend.Sara and I enjoyed a far-ranging conversation. We discussed community and whether a vibrant community can exist without some in-person contact; her Mount Rushmore of writers; the fast-evolving world of creative work; her attraction to Zen Buddhism; the passing of her mother and becoming buddies with her father; why we need to stay close to who we are in this hectic, sometimes crazy modern world; and much more.We enjoyed a beautiful, heartfelt discourse. I keep returning to the themes we discussed:* Sara has been a writer her entire life. She has coached and now has become a Zen teacher. The interplay between writing and teaching makes sense, and not only for research-intensive, university-level teachers. In some ways, both teachers and writers seek to leave something of themselves to posterity, to eternity. * The mandate of the Oracle at Delphi to “Know Thyself” always struck me as an urgent calling into introspection. Perhaps. But Sara articulates another side — we know who we are, in part at least, by and through our lives in community. As she says, “I don’t think we can truly become ourselves without other people.”* Sara urges us to keep our Why at the center of our work. As the former Hindu priest Dandapani writes, “Discovering your life’s purpose should be your sole focus if you don’t know it. Don’t stop until you discover it. Then you can spend the rest of your life living in alignment with that purpose.” * We find ourselves under perpetual bombardment from people, companies and brands telling us who we should be, how we should spend our time, what we should buy, and what we should aspire to. Sara urges us to preserve time to reflect on and rediscover who we are, what we believe and what we stand for. Whether we engage in zazen, meditation, prayer or another such practice, it is a vital defense against that onslaught. Thank you, Sara, for such a lovely conversation!Episode Links* Sara’s website* Sara’s Substack, Tiny Revolutions* Angel City Zen Center This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sa.life