The Run to End Avoidance
“All men should strive to learn before they die what they are running from, and to, and why.” ~James Thurber
It never ceases to amaze me how vigilant some people can be about avoiding the most important person in their life: themselves.
We’ll confront others but turn away from ourselves; we’ll stay in bad marriages but divorce ourselves. Fear is at the base of it, of course; we might not want to face what we’re running from.
But a basic truth in life is that it is impossible to outrun yourself
read moreDancing with Mother Nature
“Weather is a great metaphor for life; sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad, and there’s nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella.” ~Terri Guillemets
What a week: It opened with an earthquake and closed with a hurricane! One might think Mother Nature is a bit pissed off.
I was driving to Hartford, Ct. on Tuesday, listening to talk radio. At 2:00 pm a local talk host began his show with these words: “Well! We’re going to skip over the local news—the phone lines are going crazy! Where were you when the earthquake hit?” Um, earth quake…? Where, when
read moreThe Winds of Trust
That’s all the motorcycle is, a system of concepts worked out in steel. ~Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Challenges are best conquered when the unconscious works to support the conscious mind. I wrote about that last week. But sometimes, it works the other way around; the unconscious countermands the conscious.
Awareness does not immunity make.
read moreConquering the Waves
“Opposition is a natural part of life. Just as we develop our physical muscles through overcoming opposition—such as lifting weights—we develop our character muscles by overcoming challenges and adversity.” ~Stephen R. Covey
I want to tell you a story. Something that happened today.
I conducted my five-day retreat, The Trust Program, at my family’s summer cottage on an island in the mighty St. Lawrence River this past week. It ended today, Sunday, which is also my nephew’s 16th birthday, that fact having nothing to do with this story except that it brings to mind the notion of learning to drive
read moreNew Ways of Seeing
“There’s no disaster that can’t become a blessing,no blessing that can’t become a disaster.” ~Richard Bach
Several people contacted me concerning the devastating tornadoes that wreaked havoc across the southern central United States last week. They expressed both concern and confusion: Why do these natural disasters occur? Why so many? How could God—if there is one—allow such destruction, such suffering, such loss
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