Do we use our words with care? Words are powerful. They shape our thoughts. Thoughts shape our actions- good and bad. And so a pen is mightier than a sword. (Language Shapes Our Thoughts) Where does this leave us in an interconnected world? Many cultures exaggerate as a matter of fact. Americans are prone to…
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Barbara Bush is gone. Actual conversation I had: Me: “Barbara Bush passed away today.” Kid: “So, what did Barbara Bush do anyway?”, spoken with disdain. Me: Absolutely incredulous, “She was the mom and wife of TWO Presidents.” Kid: “She didn’t do anything.” Me: “What?!?! She raised the kid who became President and supported and gave…
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There is no such thing as privacy for children. Experts today tell us of the critical importance of monitoring our children’s on-line lives (see https://www.teensafe.com). Parents have apps on their phones allowing them to see every text sent through various medium and to confirm whereabouts. Parents check their children’s browser history to be sure that their…
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Tara Westover is raised to fear every institution: governmental or corporate including schools and hospitals. Her family lives in the mountains of Idaho. They are off the grid. Tara never spends a day in school. When her brother suffers a life threatening head injury, they treat it at home. When her father is severely burned…
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FEAR. In the story of Chicken Little we learn an important lesson about fear. After an acorn falls on Chicken Little’s head, Chicken Little assumes the sky is falling and runs off to tell her friends. She and her friends ultimately meet up with the fox, who cleverly takes advantage of their fear and eats them! As…
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With hesitation… I enter the gun debate. The most upsetting aspect is that people have firmly planted their feet on opposite ends of this issue and refuse to acknowledge any compromise. To my friends who are vehemently anti-gun, those who want all guns banned from all forums: Consider our vast and beautiful country. In some…
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I was recently struck by comments in an “allergy mom’s group”. One mom asked if she was overreacting for taking her child home when her in-laws had a meal filled with her child’s allergen even though there was other food that the child could eat… after all, her in-laws knew of the allergen. What struck…
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Leadership is a trait that every individual should have. Some, will take their leadership to a communal level and be our next generation’s leaders; others will be individuals who lead by example, making our world a better place one good deed at a time. How do we develop leadership in ourselves and others? It only…
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And so… Robert Frost wrote in the Mending Wall, “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall… Good fences make good neighbors.” As much as Frost did not like the wall that separated him from his neighbor, in the end the wall remained. Today, in America we are fortunate to live in a time when…
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In this insightful TED talk Emily Esfahani Smith shares with us how true happiness is found. Want happiness? Develop these four traits: Belong- Be are part of a community where you are needed. Have Purpose- Live a life of meaning where you know your purpose in this world. Transcend- See the vastness of this world and…
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