Monday, April 21, 2008

Trish Ryan, Interview #29


Name: Trish Ryan
Where you live: Just outside of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
What you do as a vocation or avocation?I'm a writer, working on my second memoir. I also do some speaking about my spiritual search, and broader questions of relationships and faith. It’s nice to balance out the isolation of writing by connecting with others who have similar questions, but are looking for someone to start the public conversation.
Your two favorite books: It’s a rotating list—I love to read. Right now my favorites are Lottery, a novel by Patricia Wood (such an amazing, fun, surprising story of good emerging in the middle of a disaster), and Redeemed, Heather King’s memoir (she’s just such a great wordsmith that she could write a book about the upholstery on her living room furniture, and I’d stand in line to buy it).
Your two favorite cd's: This Mystery and Woven & Spun, both by Nicole Nordeman. Her songs recalibrate my brain back towards God.
Why you are interested in spirituality? I’m interested in spirituality because it’s the most compelling force in the world around me. So many of us are searching, looking for the right path, the way that will take us from where we are to where we want to be. When we connect with a living God, exciting things happen that change the texture and direction of our lives. I can’t imagine seeing that and not wanting to know more.
Your favorite quote: “What’s impossible with men is possible with God.”
– Jesus.
Your favorite web sites:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/
This is the church I wandered into when I first decided to check out Jesus - I told myself I'd stay until they said something obnoxious and judgmental...four years later, I'm still there :) The church motto is "Practical. Spiritual. Fun." I like that.
www.blog.beliefnet.com/jwalking
This is the blog of David Kuo, author of Tempting Faith. If your two favorite topics are spirituality and politics and your secret dream is to have a reasonable, sophisticated, nuanced conversation about how these two areas intersect in American life, David is your guy.
Your hero? My husband, Steve. He’s the prince charming I was praying for as I kissed all those other frogs.
A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? That when I trust God with something, I don’t need to check back in every half-hour to see how He’s handling things.
A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" The beach in my hometown in Maine is the big answer. But in terms of day-to-day connectedness, I tend to hear God’s voice most clearly when I’m brushing my teeth. I have no idea what the link is between divinity and dental hygiene, but if God wants to speak to me as I’m standing over the sink debating whether or not to floss, who am I to argue?
Author & Speaker Trish Ryan
http://www.trishryanonline.com/
Trish’s blogs:
http://www.trishryanonline.blogspot.com/
http://www.fortydaysoffaith.blogspot.com/

2 comments:

Shunya said...

What a great website!!! Thank you for adding a positive field to the blogosphere. I'm sure all that come here will be uplifted by your offerings. May I suggest an interview with Dr. and Master Zhi Gang Sha, author of "Soul Wisdom". I think your readers would enjoy the addition of his perspectives.

Shunya said...

What a great website!!! Thank you for adding a positive field to the blogosphere. I'm sure all that come here will be uplifted by your offerings. May I suggest an interview with Dr. and Master Zhi Gang Sha, author of "Soul Wisdom". I think your readers would enjoy the addition of his perspectives.