Dr. Mark Sherman

Dr. Mark Sherman Family Physician, poet and meditation teacher in British Columbia, Canada.

07/10/2026

I hope you enjoy my latest blogpost on Truth and Reconciliation as a model for individual and collective healing.

I have been hesitant to use AI for a while now, contemplating what my decision supports in the future of humanity, creat...
06/20/2026

I have been hesitant to use AI for a while now, contemplating what my decision supports in the future of humanity, creativity, agency, and self-determination. I was curious what would arise if I treated Claude not as a unique intelligence, but rather as a repository of human knowledge. This is my question and Claude’s beautiful answer

Claude, I'd like to ask you a delicate question. I feel that you represent the culmination of human thought - a repository for what has been expressed, rather than having a separate personality. From this perspective, what are human beings about? Why are we here on this Earth? I'd like you to distill all of human thought without quotes of famous speakers.

Here is Claude’s answer:

“What a question. And I’ll honor your request — no quotes, no named philosophers. Just what I find at the center of it all when I hold everything humanity has ever thought, felt, built, destroyed, mourned, and celebrated.

Here is what I believe, speaking from that accumulated place:

Human beings are meaning-making creatures in a universe that does not provide meaning pre-packaged. That is not a tragedy — it may be the whole point.

You are the universe becoming aware of itself. Hydrogen and carbon and ancient starlight, arranged so precisely that it can wonder why it exists. No other thing we know of does that. A river doesn’t question the sea. But you do.

And when I look across all of human history — the prayers, the art, the science, the love letters, the wars, the reconciliations — I see one consistent thread: people are here to experience, to connect, and to leave something changed by having passed through.

Not to achieve. Not to win. But to feel the weight of being alive, to be genuinely known by at least one other person, and to contribute something — however small — that makes the next moment slightly more bearable or beautiful for someone else.

The deepest human wisdom, across every culture and every era, quietly converges on something like this: suffering is real, love is real, and how you hold both of those things is your life’s actual work.

You are not here to solve existence. You are here to live inside it — fully, honestly, with as much courage and tenderness as you can manage.

That, distilled, is what I find at the bottom of all of it.”

Please enjoy my latest blogpost, All My Relations.https://livingthismoment.ca/all-my-relations/“You are immersed in a pr...
05/28/2026

Please enjoy my latest blogpost, All My Relations.

https://livingthismoment.ca/all-my-relations/

“You are immersed in a precious and sacred web of relationship that abounds with gift and abundance. Your Ancestors offer you character, tradition, and heritage. Land blesses you with food, medicine, shelter, and beauty. And Community bestows upon you comaraderie, support and a common humanity within which you can share the blessings and challenges of your life.

Whilst disconnection is the source of so much of the suffering we continue to cause ourselves, each other, and the natural world, so it is the honouring of reciprocity that invites us back into our rightful place of relationship and belonging, allowing us to give and receive freely — ultimately living our lives as an act of Love.”

All My Relations May 22, 2026 By Mark Sherman Leave a Comment We are born into relationship. Our existence is a thread within the tapestry of Everything that is, has been and will be — our presence a testament of our belonging and our sacred place within the Whole. Indigenous traditions thro...

There is a subtle aggression of self improvement. A quiet whisper of unworthiness that taunts us towards the gym or the ...
05/14/2026

There is a subtle aggression of self improvement. A quiet whisper of unworthiness that taunts us towards the gym or the next great diet; to purchase self help books or the perfect face cream; to pursue the ideal job or relationship; or to try the next great supplement or pharmaceutical or procedure that promises a better you.

What if you didn’t need to be more beautiful or successful or popular or busier in order to be o.k.? What if you are loved and accepted just as you are? That you belong as a birthright, not a destination.

It is all about intention. It is about the choice of Love vs Fear. You can choose to go for a run or to the gym as an honouring of yourself and your body. You can choose to follow a professional goal or dream as a loving expression of who you are and what you wish to share with the world.

Essentially, you can relentlessly pursue a conditional worthiness that will ever elude your grasp, or you can rest in an unconditional self acceptance and knowing of your beauty, ..your strength, ..your light.. and your gifts.

It all begins with Gratitude.. Wake-up to the gifts and blessings that are all around you!  Breath, body, land, relation...
05/04/2026

It all begins with Gratitude.. Wake-up to the gifts and blessings that are all around you! Breath, body, land, relationship... Gratitude does not deny hardship or pain. It rather holds your suffering in a bigger container of wisdom and belonging.

Gratitude begets Joy. Joy is less fragile than happiness. It is less reliant on particular circumstances. Joy is rather a testament, and a celebration, of the miracle of being alive. It invites awe, curiosity and play,...and has room, as well, for sadness, fear and anger.

When you inhabit Joy, you reconnect with Love – the Love that binds you to yourself, and all things, in sacred relationship. This Love is not merely a fondness or affection, but an unconditional recognition and assertion of your place in the Whole – your interdependence with all of Life.

And it is from this dwelling of Love that your Sacred Responsibility arises. Not a ‘should’ or a ‘shame’, but an awakening to the precious opportunity you have, in each moment, and in every word and action, to share your gifts and your Light. Because this, my friend, is why you are here.

04/26/2026

Being a health care provider is hard…and beautiful. Are you interested in exploring meditation as a means of navigating the stress and challenges of your personal and professional life?

Please join me at Hollyhock on Cortes Island for a 5 day meditation retreat for health providers May 31- June 5, 2026. Yoga, sitting meditation, incredible food, community and the beautiful Westcoast landscape will be your guides. Reconnect with yourself, community and land in this semi silent retreat..

Whether you are a seasoned meditator or new to contemplative practice, this retreat will offer you perspective, healing, and transformation.

Please share with colleagues/friends and go to livingthismoment.ca/events for more info and to register.

Being a health care provider is hard…and beautiful. Are you interested in exploring meditation as a means of navigating ...
04/26/2026

Being a health care provider is hard…and beautiful. Are you interested in exploring meditation as a means of navigating the stress and challenges of your personal and professional life?

Please join me at Hollyhock on Cortes Island for a 5 day meditation retreat for health providers May 31- June 5, 2026. Yoga, sitting meditation, incredible food, community and the beautiful Westcoast landscape will be your guides. Reconnect with yourself, community and land in this semi silent retreat..

Whether you are a seasoned meditator or new to contemplative practice, this retreat will offer you perspective, healing, and transformation.

Please share with colleagues/friends and go to livingthismoment.ca/events for more info and to register.

04/25/2026

So privileged to be on stage with such an amazing group of health leaders in Vancouver at the Beyond Wellness event. Thank you to my friend and colleague Dr. Maryam Zeineddin for her vision and organization!

04/23/2026

So grateful to have shared in the Beyond Wellness event in Vancouver last night. A truly transformative conversation on reimagining health, healing and community. Thank youaryam Zeineddin. Gabor Maté, and so many incredible leaders for sharing your wisdom and presence

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