kindness
Words – the Power in their Presence and in their Absence
“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” ~Martin Luther King, Jr. The girls in the group were speaking in whispers about one of their friends. “I heard she…” And so began the denigration of one person’s character and reputation. Her best friend was standing […]
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The Other Side of the Story
“Every truth has two sides; it is as well to look at both before we commit ourselves to either.” ~Aesop The teacher walked into the room to see one boy punch the other in the arm. Quickly, she chastised the offender and checked to be sure the victim was ok. “But Teacher,” said the […]
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Time to Stand
“It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but even more to stand up to your friends.” ~ J. K. Rowling Pushing against the heat filling the noon air, I hurried up the hill, excited to see the monument. Arriving at the massive structure, I read and re-read the names […]
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Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
“Imagine what our real neighbors would be like if each of us offered, as a matter of course, just one kind word to another person. Sometimes, all it takes is one kind word to nourish another person. Think of the ripple effect that can be created when we nourish someone. One kind empathetic word has […]
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The Rest of the Story
“Don’t let the force of an impression when it first hits you knock you off your feet; just say to it: Hold on a moment; let me see who you are and what you represent. Let me put you to the test.” ~ Epictetus That darn Ward Cleaver! I get so frustrated because he always […]
Read MoreAfter the Honeymoon
“The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are, first, hard work; second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common sense.” ― Thomas A. Edison Standing in the church of my childhood, I made a vow to love and honor this guy I had known for almost 18 months for the rest of our lives. I was 23 years old […]
Read MoreHonoring Grief
“There are no quick fixes to grief. No easy answers. Every expression of grief that wants to be felt and honored and given its space must be allowed, in order to heal.” ― Tom Zuba It is about this time of year that my emotions seem to be on high alert. We have Mother’s Day, […]
Read MoreTime to Speak
“Shame derives its power from being unspeakable.” ― Brené Brown, Daring Greatly “Why am I afraid to tell you who I am? I am afraid to tell you who I am, because if I tell you who I am, you may not like who I am, and it’s all that I have.” John Joseph Powell My Aunt […]
Read MoreCome into the Light
“How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.” ― William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice The light in my aunt’s apartment seemed really dim, and with her extreme vision issues, it was especially a problem. In the lightbulb area at the store, we looked at all the different […]
Read MoreNeed a Hug?
“Smile, breathe, and go slowly.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh My alarm was set for 30 minutes before my check-in time, and I sat with the browser page open so I wouldn’t be late. While I waited, I started reading a book. It was really interesting. It was so interesting that when I checked to see how […]
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Thoughts to Encourage
Nothing helps like a good nap…
Birds are Beautiful
A Dog is Faithful…
