I’ve often heard of people speaking of a “band aid solution”…and when it is said, it is usually with a note of derision. It’s a bad thing to have a band aid solution…implies that a person is not addressing the issue at its source, and is providing a temporary and inadequate solution. I’m not so …
Cooperation and Connection
I remember being on the threshold of graduation from university. While my fellow students and I knew we were fortunate to have the opportunity to attend university, many of us were weary from living on a student budget. We sat around dreaming about the day was going to be like when we received our first …
Tell Someone She is Amazing
When is the last time you told a friend that s/he was amazing? Kim McGregor lost her friend, Erika Heller, in 2009, because of colon cancer. Kim misses Erika for all sorts of wonderful reasons, one of which is that Erika ended their converstaions with the words, “I think you’re amazing because…” As a tribute …
Paying for Benign Neglect
My hard drive crashed last week. On Friday afternoon, after a fabulous 2 day workshop during which I typed copious notes onto my laptop, after I prepared a lengthy presentation, after I had nearly completed writing a couple of blog entries, the computer froze. The Apple Genius (confident types, those self-named-guys are) knew how to …
…listening
The first duty of love is to listen Tillich Active listening is important. If you don’t know what to say when someone you care about is talking, you’re not sure you have anything brilliant to add, that’s OK. Don’t feel pressure to be brilliant—just let him or her know what you thought you heard …
Forgiveness the Antidote to Bitterness
Bitterness imprisons life: love releases it. Bitterness paralyzes life; love empowers it. Bitterness sours life; love sweetens it. Bitterness sickens life; love heals it. Bitterness blinds life; love anoints its eyes. Harry Fosdick Been thinking about the burden of bitterness and resentment lately…watching people I care about stumble under the crushing weight of woundedness. Over …
To love is to be vulnerable
To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love any thing and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure at keeping it intact you must give it to no one’s, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies or luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up …
AA wisdom
Live and let live Tolerance, a fundamental value in AA, means that we acknowledge our personal shortcomings while letting others have their own. We focus on our similarities with other people rather than resenting our differences. I was sent a link today to a page of wisdom sayings that are commonly used in Alcoholics Anonymous. …
The Cookie Lady
Sometimes, you just watch something that looks sweet and feels great to see…and it reminds a person to be generous, walk humbly, and remember the big picture. I was at a high school boys basketball game on the weekend. Sweaty adolescents with too much testosterone scrapping it out to win. Played hard. Each team wanted …
A Hand Up
Sometimes small drops acts of grace start a trickle, or maybe even a flood of action. That’s a good thing. The button that opens the door to the gas tank on my car stopped working last week. One of those wierd moments of frustration where the car was working fine, the gas tank was working …