Life – a cup at a time
On Planting a Tree Water and a pickaxe. Sun beating down. One by one the rocks come out, only to reveal another and more. Body aches from breaking rock and shoveling dirt. Joints complain from arthritis and heat. Why? I ask, wiping off sweat. Story says there was a tree nearby, before the oil men …
It’s so nice to be appreciated. On December 23rd, I walked into my office, sat down, and nearly burst into tears. On my desk were two Christmas cards from the four women I work most closely with. I was overwhelmed with gratitude, humility, and joy. I finally found my fit. Let me explain. I decided …
Joy Isn’t What a Lot of People Think It Is I’ve been mulling the idea of joy ever since reading the article The Rachel Hollis Drama Is Why I Don’t Trust Influencers by Bertilla Niveda on Medium. I’m not familiar with Rachel Hollis, but apparently her famous motto is “Choose Joy.” Ms. Niveda’s case against Ms. …
Sooner or Later You Must DO Something In the late 1970s, long before self-improvement became a thing, I was traveling in Europe after 2 years of college and struggling with what to do next. Sitting on the beach at the Black Sea, one of my companions told me the following: Say you want to sail …
Seek Better Instead of Normal I realize it’s a bold statement to say that normal doesn’t exist. But stop and think about what normal really is. Is it average? That’s merely a percentage in the middle. By definition, at least two-thirds are on either end. Is it common? But what’s common for your community or …
Wise old sayings are great — until they’re not. I grew up with all sorts of sayings. Some are confusing, like A rolling stone gathers no moss. Is it good to avoid being covered by moss? Or is being covered by moss better? Industriousness can be good, but busyness for busyness’ sake isn’t. We need …
The pandemic has revealed to me both the pitfalls of consumerism and my slavery to it Like so many others, my job fell victim to COVID-19 and the economic repercussions. Soon burned out on the news, I spent a lot of time reading. I like history, suspense, mysteries, fantasy, and books about how the brain …
Priorities are something we have to work at; you can’t just assume you have them in place. But often we ignore priorities as if the word itself is somehow dirty. I was brought up short this last week by an incident that reminded me of this reality. My husband decided that he wanted to buy …
We all deserve a better world. After a year of everything that could go wrong seeming to do so, I think everyone is yearning for some stability. People say, “I just want things to get back to normal.” But, if we think about it, that’s not what most of us want. (OK, if you managed …
This year the holidays promise to be particularly tough for a lot of people. But they are survivable. In addition to political upheaval, fires, and storms, 2020 brought us a pandemic, and we’re already seeing cases surge from Thanksgiving. The same supportive gatherings with friends and family that help stave off the blues this time …