About Me
Hello, I’m Malcolm.
I began meditating when I was seven years old, because I didn't know what else to do. It helped. Thirty-some years later, it still helps, however, not in the way the apps promise. Some days, the breath is a friend. Some days it's a fire alarm, and I need to open my eyes, feel the chair, and look at the wall for a while. That's the practice, too.
As my practice developed, I was drawn to Zen. In 2017, I received the sixteen bodhisattva precepts and was ordained as a lay priest at Hosshin-ji in San Francisco by my teacher, Rev. Keiryu Liên Shutt. Yoga came alongside: I trained with Jason Crandell in vinyasa and Judith Lasater in restorative practice, and I've taught in offices, in the snow, and while wearing SCUBA gear.
Then I went back to school for social work because I wanted to sit with people in the hardest moments, not just the calm ones. Today, my clinical work is with veterans at a nonprofit in San Francisco, where I'm a Registered Associate Clinical Social Worker (#105191) practicing under the supervision of a licensed clinician.
What I make here.
Short, plain practices for people who have been told to relax and found that it made things worse. Everything on this site is education and practice, not treatment. I don't see private clients, and I won't be able to until I'm fully licensed. If you're in crisis, please reach out to someone: call or text 988 or your local emergency number.
I believe a society is measured by how it treats the people it would rather not look at. I try to use my skills, my privilege, and my time accordingly.
RYT 500 yoga teacher
Ordained Zen Buddhist lay priest, Hosshin-ji, 2017
Registered Associate Clinical Social Worker, California #105191
Wilderness First Responder