Rather than devoting themselves to organizational conformity and digging deeply into a single religion, the "spiritual-but-not-religous" prefer to sample from a wide variety of practices from the spiritual smorgasbord.

Who doesn't love a big buffet? Here's a selection of the 23 spiritual practices I engaged in during my experimental year:

1. Pilgrimage: A dip in Thoreau's iconic Walden Pond
A transcendentalist baptism

2. Observing Lent: 40 days booze-free
High on dry

3. Yoga: Ashtanga & goat yoga
Frolicking with fuzzy creatures trumps the warrior pose

4. Solitude: A treehouse time-out
Getting comfortable with silence

5. Chakra balancing: A session with a shaman
Clearing the blockages—a spiritual enema

6. Witch camp: Casting a circle & raising a cone of power
A muggle goes undercover

7. Protest: The Women's March on Washington
Divine defiance

8. Psychedelic psilocybin: Taking a little trip
Mom on 'shrooms—a magical mystery tour

9. Forest therapy: A dose of phytoncide, nature's serotonin
Going out on a limb by talking to trees

10. Death awareness: Hosting a death dinner, choosing a coffin, picking a burial plot
A foray through the valley of the shadow

11. Unplugging: Cutting back on screen time
Ta-ta to Twitter, nixing Netflix

12. Psychic encounters: A visit to Lily Dale, North America's oldest spiritual community
A medium offers a message from beyond the grave

13. Creating a home altar: Making room for sacred space
Shopping for Buddha bling

14. Singing: Making music at the side of the deathbed & on the edge of The Atlantic
Finding my voice

15. Float tank: Saltwater immersion
Delightful drifting

16. Holotropic breathwork: Heavy breathing as spiritual therapy
Who knew hyperventilating could lead to an ecstatic experience?

17. Church: Pulled to the pew
At home among the Unitarians

18. Tarot: Drawing the Devil and the Death cards
A tool for divine direction?

19. Gratitude: A daily check-in with the Happy Tapper app
Thank you, thank you very much

20. Reiki: The magic touch
A bizarre visit from "soul guides"

21. Simplicity: Getting my house in order with Marie Kondo
Tidying brings transformation

22. Past life regression: Back to the past
Born again. And again. And again

23. Tattoo me: A bird on my shoulder
Marked for life