Mere Convenience

The degree to which you love the one you love the least is a measure of the degree to which you love the one you claim to love the most. I have never been more convinced. The degree to which you love the one you love the most is a measure of mere convenience. That…

Before

Wisdom is valuing those you love before you lose them.

Notice

Notice how the older people in your life tend to go silent as they age. Not because they have nothing to say. But because they no longer live simply to be heard.

Enough

We often rail against the seemingly unreasonable expectations of others when really it’s our own expectations that are crushing us. The best gift we can give ourselves is to release our expectations as to what is going to happen in the next five minutes, much less the next five years—expectations of what others are going…

Who You Really Are

The best test of who you really are is your internal response when something bad happens to someone you dislike or disagree with.

Good Soil

I gave up on the garden idea this year and have just tried to keep the weeds at bay and the birds happy. Then I realized some plants were growing from the seeds I put out for the birds—not in places where I would have planted them but in walkways and in tight corners against…

Beautiful Response

Stories of incredible suffering can be beautiful in hindsight, not because of the suffering but because of the beautiful response.

Too Much

To some, you’re too old to understand how things are. Too young to remember how things were. Too experienced to be innocent. Too innocent to have half a clue. Too educated to be in touch with reality. Too uneducated to comprehend the complexity. Too left to be right. Too right to care. Here’s to those…

Worldview

The things we see and experience produce feelings that form mental associations that connect with hints of reality, changing how we negotiate our way through life for better or worse. What we expose ourselves to creates short-term moods that turn into deep-seated attitudes that influence our perceptions and life choices for the long term. They…

Consider

Carefully consider the questions you ask. You’ll be stuck with the answers.

Fundamental

Many of us build our lives, our identities, our platforms, on the bitter declaration, “Look what has been done to me!” That, I believe, divides us more than any of our social, political, economic or religious differences. On the other side are those who ask, “What good can I do for others?” The distinction is…

New Realities

We make positive advances during times of crisis, disruption and uncertainty. We make amazing discoveries under pressure when our efforts are focused on what is most important. We’re capable of rising to the occasion. We’re capable of learning how to do old things in new and better ways. We’re capable of recognizing challenges as opportunities…