“…And I think about those people who mean so much to me And for so many years have made me so very happy And I count the times I have forgotten to say “THANK YOU” And how much I love them.” –”Sometimes”, Richard & Karen Carpenter LONG ago, on a visit to my father’s grave site on Father’s day,…
“Nothing is important than THIS DAY!” – Goethe HOW has 2018, which is about to come to a close, treated you thus far? Has it been smooth sailing? Or has there been an unfair volume of challenges, glitches and bumps that tend to overwhelm and capsize that little boat you are navigating in the sea of life?…
“To everything – turn, turn, turn. There is a season – turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven.” – A song by The Byrds (based on the Book of Ecclesiastes) IT is November. And we are coming full circle. Again. A circle is perhaps the perfect geometric structure there is. Although some would claim the…
“The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy.” —Alfred North Whitehead (Continued from last week’s issue …) “Pay attention, Icarus. Stick close behind me and watch your altitude. Fly too low and the sea with its moisture will make your wings too heavy. Fly too high and the heat of the sun…
“The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy.” —Alfred North Whitehead (HERE’S an abbreviated version of a fascinating story from Greek mythology. This is a redux.) Long ago in the island of Crete, there lived a man named Daedalus, who was famed for his skills as an inventor. He worked for King…
(Third of 3 parts) “I build my house of stone I build my house of bricks. I’ve had no chance to sing and dance. ‘Cause work and play don’t mix.” —Practical Pig (This is the third and final installment of the 15 Tips on How my Build A House of Bricks in Any Season Series.)…
” I build my house of sticks. I build my house of twigs. With a hey-diddle-diddle, I play on the fiddle. And dance all kinds of jigs” — Fiddler Pig (The first 5 tips came out in last week’s issue. Here’s the second installment of 5 more.) 6. Simplify. Simplify. Simplify. Know the difference between needs and wants. Use…
” I build my house of straw. I build my house of hay. I toot my flute. I don’t give a hoot. And play around all day.” — Fifer Pig (Enjoy a redux of a series of previous articles tweaked and fine-tuned for these days — which, for many of us, would be a much different season,…
(16th of a series) ”He who must travel happily must travel light.” — Antoine de Saint-Exupery TRAVEL is a pure metaphor for our life’s journey. There are two choices in the way we can travel. We can travel light or we can load up on stuff and literally become a beast of burden. The…
”Don’t be shy about asking for help. It doesn’t mean you’re weak, it only means you’re wise.” — Anonymous (15th of a series) WE live in the Age of Information. You could say it is both a blessing and a curse to live during what could very well be “the best of times, the…
(13th of a series) ”…Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear — not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain WHAT is your greatest fear? Some say that for most men, the greatest of fears are the fear of death, fear of failure and fear of public speaking. I know of someone who is deathly…
Third in three generations BODA de Oro is Spanish for Golden Wedding Anniversary. It is a landmark event in a married couple’s life worthy of a meaningful celebration. To have a marriage last 50 years or more is in a class of achievement all by itself — more so these days. Marriage, as a sacred…
“…You won’t need a U-Haul truck when you pass. Jesus did say it is harder for a rich man to get into heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle…” (Thirteenth of a series) [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of…
“…Someone said that reunions are like masquerade balls. No one comes as his genuine self. Many try to hide the scars behind a mask…” (Twelfth of a series) (Conclusion of 2 parts) [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech…
(12th of a series – conclusion of 2 parts) ”…Someone said that reunions are like masquerade balls. No one comes as his genuine self. Many try to hide the scars behind a mask…” WHETHER we like it or not, the past is a big part of who we have become. At some point, it may be worth…
“…The saddest thing about life is to be forgotten as though you never lived… (Twelfth of a series) (2nd of 2 parts) [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech speak, this means before your life’s energy goes…
(Twelfth of a series – 1st of 2 parts) “…If life is like driving on the freeway, it is supposedly a time when you begin to downshift your gears, getting off thefast lane as you move to the middle lane and gradually sidle to the farthest right lane to find your exit…” WHAT’S your game…
(Eleventh of a series) “… And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music. —Ascribed to Friedrich Nietzsche CARE to dance? Most people have rhythm embedded in their DNA. Music moves them emotionally and physically. Music is a powerful gravity-defying force that can speak to…
(Tenth of a series) “… As within, so without…” —Hermes Trismegistus WHILE appearances may deceive, more often than not, what you are is reflected on the outside. Becoming your own style icon does not mean maxing out your credit cards just to follow the latest fashion trends. Don’t do it. It’s a fool’s errand. You…
(Ninth of a series) ”Sister, do you speak Italian? Can I talk to you? I am angry with God.” I turned my head and it was a beautiful lady, elegantly dressed. I thought, “She has tortured eyes.” I AM suspending my idea series for a Bucket To-Do List for the time being to share a story told to…
The art of “staycation” (8th of a series) ”When you clear your mechanism and tune out the noise that invades your being, you may come to a rare state of grace – that God is in His heaven and all is right with the world.” [Select a handful of those things on your bucket list…
Fix the broken (Seventh of a series) ”Broken hearts? Broken relationships? The solution is always the same. FORGIVE. Forgive as you have been forgiven. And whiLe you’re at it, FORGET.” [Select a handful of those things on your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech…
(Sixth of a series) ”The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” –Marcel Proust [Select a handful of those things on your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech speak, this means before your life’s energy goes into…
(Fifth of a series) “Food is a way of making a connection with others and making memories.” [Select a handful of those things on your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech speak, this means before your life’s energy goes into ‘low batt mode’ and…
(Fourth of a series) “I have a massage when I want to relax. I love being pampered. I love island massages when you’re outside in the fresh air. —Angie Stone [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In…
(Third of a series) “…Humility, like darkness reveals the heavenly lights. – Henry David Thoreau [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech speak, this means before your life’s energy goes into ‘low batt mode’ and life has run…
(Second of a series) “Healing begins with forginess. It can make us whole again. And when we are whole and bathed in God’s light, darkness no longer holds power over us. [Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In…
(First of a series) “What goes on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoonand three in the evening?” asked the Sphinx. “Man” Oedipus answered after some thought. –Riddle of the Sphinx SO here you are in the late afternoon of your life. Sundown is on the horizon. The end game is in sight. You…
(Last of 4 parts) (Continued from last week …) “All God’s angels come to us disguised.”–James Russell Lowell AN angel is an invisible presence that must be acknowledged to become ever stronger. God sends angels to keep watch over human beings and help them in every human challenge. There is, however, the element of free…
(Third of 4 parts) (Continued from last week…) TRUST our own instincts. Your own personal experience will color the lens with which you view and relate with your personal guardian angel. God so loved the world, He sent His only son to redeem us from sin and death so we may gain eternal life. Angels…
