The Return of Minerva's Muse!

Vol. 23: May 19, 2022

Minerva’s Muse is back! If you’ve been following me since the early days of (my now defunct) Patreon, you might remember that for a year or so I sent out weekly columns of inspiration as a perk for supporters. Ultimately, sending these out weekly was became too much work, and I shifted my focus to new things.

That said, I’ve missed putting these columns together, so I’m excited to start them back up again on Substack! I won’t be sending these out weekly anymore, nor do I plan to stick to a schedule of any kind. Given that Minerva’s Muse is a column of inspiration, sending it out only when I feel inspired to do so feels fitting.

Why Minerva? Minerva is the Roman goddess of wisdom, creativity, medicine, commerce, the arts, and later, war. She bears similarities to the Greek goddess Athena, albeit with slightly less of an association to war. It may seem odd for the goddess to rule over both art and war... I’m sure you’ve all seen the “Make Art, Not War” posters. However, upon further reflection it’s clear that art is an expression of creativity, and a powerful form of revolution - as is medicine, wisdom, commerce and all that Minerva embodied. As I wrote about here, if you’ve ever birthed a child, a new idea, a work of art, or a new identity, you know that courage, determination, and heroism are all inherent to the painful labor of growth. It seems that something must always die before substantial growth or change becomes possible. Ie, no act of creativity will ever be void of a battle.

Minerva's name is derived from meminisse, meaning "to remember", and it is my hope that through this column, Minerva will help us all to remember that the tools necessary for revolution and change are rooted in our ideas, our creations and our healing. In other words, fixing the world means fixing ourselves.

From art to literature, music, recipes and travel ideas, I hope that this column will ignite a creative spark or two. From my eyes to yours... it is my intention to remind you that inspiration is everywhere.

To see the previous volumes of Minerva’s Muse that I sent out via Patreon, click here.

Without further ado…

Listen…

My next podcast will be dedicated to exploring the ins and outs of power, shadow, delusion and abuse within the domain of the “healing” professions. Cover Story is a podcast that explores the shadow side of the growing industry of psychedelic therapy. It’s difficult to listen to at times, but presents some fascinating nuance and imperative insights that few people are willing to delve into. Tune into episode #117 of A Millennial’s Guide to Saving the World for more on this coming soon.

Read…

Click here to read a beautiful story about Crestone, CO and its open-air pyre.

Watch…

An endlessly touching account of one man’s commitment to living life on his own terms.

Look…

Death & Life by Gustav Klimt

Taste…

It’s taken me a few tries, but I think I’ve mastered the art of the Spanish Tortilla. It’s kind of like a cross between quiche and an omelette, and honestly, I’m pretty obsessed. All you need is eggs, olive oil, potatoes, salt and onions. This is the recipe I’ve been using. If you make this, tell me what you think!