Aging Youth is the gift of nature, but age is a work of art. (Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, 20th century Polish poet) Children can hardly wait to grow up, and many adults wish they could be restored to a youthful age. Learning to be content with your current stage in life is...
Secrets There are two kinds of secrets: those we keep from others and [those] we hide from ourselves. (Frank Warren, British sports promoter) “Cross my heart and hope to die” was a mantra we recited as kids when we promised not to tell a friend’s secret. Fortunately,...
Judging Diagnosis without prescription is a cruel thing. (Mark Buchanan, physicist and author) We all seem to be able to diagnose the troubles of the world. Whether it’s local school issues, national political debates, or our neighbor’s distressing situation—we can...
Music You can cage the singer but not the song. (Harry Belafonte, 20th century pops singer) Music has a way of outlasting its composer, singer, or artist. Tunes and lyrics may remain in our minds or be recalled at odd moments far removed from when they were popular....
Forgiving True forgiveness is complete and total. (Louis Zamperini, military veteran) How often have you heard someone say, “I’ve forgiven . . . but I can’t forget”? It may be really difficult to forgive someone who has offended you deeply and, perhaps, even publicly....
Living Life The purpose of life is to live it… without fear for newer and richer experience. (Eleanor Roosevelt, late US president’s wife and activist) Some people seem to be stuck, uncertain as to what to do or hesitating for fear of failure. There are so many...
Stories It has been said that next to hunger and thirst our most basic human need is for storytelling. (Khalil Gibran, 20th century Lebanese-American writer) Do you remember your parents reading or telling stories to you at bedtime? Maybe they made up those stories....
Determination The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me. (Ayn Rand, late Russian-American novelist) There are some work places where enterprise and initiative among employees are frowned on. In those places you have to have permission...
Wealth The problem with affluence . . . is not that there is anything wrong with prosperity itself but that material abundance often leads to spiritual amnesia. (Mark Powell, author and professor) Most of us live in a pretty affluent community, and many of us are...
Reading II Reading gives us some place to go when we have to stay where we are. (Mason Cooley, late college professor) The Coronavirus pandemic gave most of us a lot of time at home to do nothing—or to find productive activity. As Cooley says, reading can get us out...
Reading I The journey of a lifetime starts with the turning of a page. (Rachel Anders, author) Literacy is one of life’s most importance achievements. Even with modern technology, we often have to “read” what’s being transmitted in cyber space. Opening a book may...
Pleasure Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it. (Søren Kierkegard, 19th century Danish philosopher) “Breathless” and “haste,” indeed, are two words that clearly express the pace of life in 21st century America. And it is also...