Still Listening

Letters on loss, healing, and the mystery of being alive —
from deep in the woods.

Work with me

Author: Peter Woods

  • Religion is more than promises that are out of this world

    It is a truism that no one person suffers in the same way as another. The African-american song lyric made famous by Louis Armstrong puts it like this: “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen. Sometimes I’m up, and sometimes I’m down, Yes, Lord, you know sometimes I’m almost to the ground. Nobody knows but Jesus.”…

  • Diabolical definitions

    During the 1870’s, French novelist Gustave Flaubert had a custom of creating humorous definitions for words. These were eventually published as a “Dictionary of Received Ideas”. Here are some examples: Absinthe – Exceptionally violent poison: one glass and you’re a dead man. Journalists drink it while writing their articles. Has killed more soldiers than the…

  • There is nothing wrong with me. I’m just different.

    “What is wrong with you?” It’s a question usually asked with exasperation when we just can’t understand another person, their behaviour, their attitude, or their beliefs. Asked of an adult the question is damaging enough, but when a parent uses the phrase as an expression of frustration a child grows up believing there is something…

  • The origins of “Decolonise the University”

    It is said, “Some people change because they see the light, but most people change because they feel the heat.” Fascinated by words, I have been intrigued by a phrase being used in student protests currently taking place across the country. “Decolonize the University” is a provocative statement that first appeared in the #RhodesMustFall movement…

  • Student protests are not new

    Universities are ancient institutions.  The first university was founded in Bologna, Italy in 1088  and is still in existence.  The first universities grew out of monastic schools and catered to the medieval fascination with learning that had been nurtured in monasteries.  Bologna University began by teaching law and its application to solve the problems facing…

  • FYI and BTW texting has taken over our relationships

    There was a time when the parting greeting to a friend was, “Call me.” It meant that at some time the friend would make a telephone call and set up another date to meet. In it’s day the telephone revolutionised life. No longer having to wait for letters to be delivered sped up social interaction.…

  • Reform in the ANC is scientifically impossible.

    I keep reading calls for the ANC to change or die. Sadly the science of change suggests that the ANC will find that impossible. A Harvard physicist gives me reason for this position. “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions” by Thomas S Kuhn was published by University of Chicago Press in 1962 and for decades was…

  • Protect yourself against the Office Bully

    Protect yourself against the Office Bully

    When I think of a bully it’s usually in a schoolyard and the bully is an oversized and awkward, sycophant-surrounded adolescent male. It’s an old stereotype and really needs updating in terms of the places bullying happens. Most readers are aware of the relatively new species called the cyber-bully who, abusing social media platforms continues…

  • Crisis or Challenge? Do you know the difference?

    Life is challenging as you know.  Why is it that we are able to cope with some of life’s challenges even though they are demanding and stressful, and other situations make us feel that our world is crashing around us? The difference is the distinction between a challenge and a crisis. Let’s begin by recognising that all…

  • Traffic Calming Cookies?

    If parenting has taught me anything it is never to make a rule that you cannot police. When a parent prohibits their child from taking cookies from the jar, that parent has created a lot of extra responsibility for themselves. Firstly, the parent will  have to set up surveillance on the cookie jar to see…