As we return to campus following the Thanksgiving break, we here at Radius are grateful to have been able to catch our collective breath before heading into the last of the semester. As we enjoyed a few days to reflect and express gratitude for all we have and for the people in our lives, that circle includes the amazing array or speakers we've hosted this semester.  In particular, the speakers for our series on the 2018 Elections provided invaluable insights into the election.

A year ago, a group of MIT students, faculty and staff joined together to create a day of learning focused on critical issues of our times. The day provided a full calendar of lectures, panels and information sessions on topics ranging from nuclear disarmament, sustainabiilty, foreign, national and economic policy, climate change, social justice issues, activism and many more. The day was an incredible success with over 1500 people participating throughout the day and evening.

Although 2018 has begun, early January remains a time for us here at Radius to reflect on the past semester and do some "catch-up"--on administrative work, reading, and assessment of what worked well during the Fall semester and what we can improve and/or adjust. January is also the time for intense planning for the semester. This current blizzard, though, is giving us an additional day of quiet: just the kind of day to catch up on podcasts.

In the fall of 2014, a group of us met and brainstormed about ways to bring the benefits of mindfulness more broadly to the MIT community. MIT Medical offers programs throughout the year and other “islands” of practitioners offer quiet moments for those who seek to create more calm in their lives.

I remember it so clearly: I was sitting outside during my first weekend of college, a book open in my lap. It was my first assignment, from my first religion course. Problems of Religious Thought sounded like it would be fun, based on what I knew from my high-school World Religions course. And then I tried to read Søren Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling. After I puzzled my way through perhaps ten of the 200 pages we were assigned, I looked up and thought: Oh no. I’m not ready for this.