wishes
Today marks the end of my first month of blogging. It feels like it's been much longer, not in a rueful way, but in that there seems to have been more thoughts and words than a month could have held! I've connected and reconnected with many, and shared real discussion that matters. I sincerely…
going beyond
I was talking with a graduate today about magical thinking. I told her that I always believed the ocean was alive and liked me best. I believed it was really there just for me, but that other people just kind of got to go sometimes. I'd be lying if I said a part of me doesn't still believe…
(un)common courtesy: part two
While greeting cards haven't quite yet faded to extinction, they are largely allocated to specific holidays and occasions. Birthdays. Bar Mitzvahs. Christmas. Thank-you cards are managing to hang in there, as well, making appearances after a shower, wedding or graduation. But aren't there…
(un)common courtesy: part one
Writing Wednesday's post, entitled "waiting," sparked a few more thoughts I'd like to share. Let me start by explaining what was once a common household item: the rotary telephone. Now I realize that some homes still have a land line. But the cordless, hand-held version that is seen today is…
know thyself
When one of the kids I mentor gets down on himself, which they often do, one of my go-to responses is "Tell me three good things about yourself." The first time I ask this, the reaction is usually the same as if I'd asked them to divulge their deepest and darkest of private secrets to me.…
waiting
For all those who do not yet know my age, I'm about to date myself. When I was growing up, we did not have the Internet. In fact, we did not have home computers at all until I was a teen. When you wanted to know how to tie your tie, you asked around. Or you went to the library and consulted a…
being right
Each of us has our own perspective on the world, a unique voice. But what are we saying with that voice? I know people who love to argue and debate. Why this movie was award worthy and that one was drivel. Which leisure activities are constructive and which are utter wastes of time and…
focus
It seems to me that potential causes for joy or misery exist in about equal proportion in the world. No one is immune from either. And so, life becomes not merely about what is, but about how I choose to tune my attentions. I know some great photographers. And I know some not-so-great ones. As…
lemonade stand
In response to my post entitled "small kindnesses," my friend Dibby wrote this comment: ...never, ever pass by a lemonade stand without indulging… When I read this, I knew exactly what she meant and how she meant it. She thinks like me. She gets it. When either of us sees a kid running a…
planning not to
I had paid the $50 bail and signed the forms twenty minutes ago. I sat in a chunky, wooden chair with a pea-green "cushion" that crinkled and reminded me of a swimming pool tarp. An infomercial played on the small, tube-model TV that was bolted to a swiveling stand high up in one corner of the…