As the strangeness and uniqueness of these days plays out many of us are left with an intense and unnerving variety of mixed feelings and opinions. I will not speak to any one view but I will speak to the resilient spirit and the massive heart of our great nation…
Don’t Play it Safe
These were the words of a famous actress when asked about her taking on a role in a recent movie that was very different from the kinds of roles she’s successfully played in the past. Her words hit me deeply. So often we put ourselves inside of self created box…
Soul Food
One of the things that I’ve enjoyed most about building my own workspace has been creating it, down to the details, in such away that the environment inspires me, in some large part defines and on a daily level, reminds me of the things that I value and strive for…
Meeting The Day
“Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life – learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.“ In a world that seems to get more complicated by the day, it was good to revisit the work of Robert…
Don’t Judge
As I did a little 180 on the step mill this morning to get in a little backwards stepping, I found myself staring directly at the person behind me in a long row of treadmills. She was older than some, going at a steady pace and… eating Fritos. Yup, sort…
High Life
Carlos Castaneda once said, “with death as the ultimate earthly advisor, why do we continue to live each day as if we are immortal?” I’ve thought about this many times since I read it in college almost 30 years ago, from a variety of perspectives and each time, even though…
Exquisite Mutuality
A respected guy, who continues to do the real work, on a daily basis once said, “people, not programs or curricula change lives.” In other words, relationships, listening, eye contact, follow up questions, showing up for another person is what really makes an impact on someone’s life. It was a…
Golden Old Friends
I reached out yesterday to an old friend that I’ve only seen once in the last 40 years and that was at another pal’s funeral. I needed a favor and thought he might be able to help. It’s a crappy position when you haven’t communicated with someone for a long…
Echoing on Forever
Lately, as my life grows more rich and more complicated, the sage words and sentiment of my 20 plus year mentor/brother have been running increasingly through my head and heart. Bobby went to the other side almost two years to the day, but now, more than any time since then,…
No matter what…
A good friend of mine said fare the well to his 94 year old grandfather this week. His dad’s dad lived a full, rich and meaningful life knowing the deep satisfaction that comes from life’s great commitments. A tail gunner in the 2nd world war, he survived being shot down…