Michael I Christie was born in New York, but grew up in a bicultural family setting in Argentina, at a time when the newer scientific and materialistic frame of thought was gaining ground in a Roman Catholic dominated social backdrop. He shunned religion when he was seven or eight and pursued a scientific education in organismal biology and behavioral ecology through university, and married with the fairytale illusion of living ‘happily ever after.’ Life was objective, direct, and obvious.

This little worldview soon shattered. He lost his job, divorced, and was forced to review almost everything. Counseling (‘therapy’) allowed him to revisit religion and philosophy. A friend gave him Ken Wilber’s Up from Eden. More of Ken’s books followed. In the 90’s he studied transpersonal psychology with Stan Grof and certified as a Holotropic Breathwork facilitator. He later worked with social facilitators in consensus building around conservation and environmental issues. As a complement, he studied social psychology and mediation. Done with the formalities. 

I prefer a more personal tone. Though much of my life has been associated with academia and I have taught various courses, I am neither an educator nor an academic by profession. This might be a limitation, but it has also freed me from many of the constraints imposed by institutional settings.  Thus, the insights gained and presented here are the result of decades pursuing my own path fueled by a deep interest in the fundamental issues of life. Wisdom may come from constant mindfulness, but sharing and validating these often-complex ideas has more to do with crafting precise yet accessible explanations and illustrations, and then exposing them to open scrutiny. I offer them here both as a contribution to our never-ending quest, and as an opportunity to test their validity.