Blog Posts

This post from Barb Klein was originally posted at Inspired Possibilities . We cannot bring our gifts to anyone unless we first give ourselves what we need. Read on...  You are NOT the Energizer Bunny®! Dear One, I have news for you… and, this might come as a shock, but you are NOT the Energizer Bunny®! No, you are not a mass of fuzziness wearing cool shades, banging aimlessly on a drum while spinning and whirling recklessly around the house. Sure, you may feel that way

This post by Anne LaFleur was originally posted at The Gift Of Happiness . I've been thinking a lot about forgiveness. Here is my take on it at the moment: When I forgive myself, it doesn't necessarily mean that I did anything wrong, or that I had hurtful intentions, or that I am bad or deserve to be punished. What it means is that I recognize I contributed to someone's pain, and I'm sorry, because I don't want to be a person who hurts people. When I forgive you, it doesn't n

I was driving the other day, flipping through radio channels a bit randomly, and the next song up was one I hadn’t heard for a long time: Peace Train by Cat Stevens . Even though this song was written in 1971, it seemed very relevant to our current world situation. Consider the words in this verse: Now I've been crying lately, Thinkin' about the world as it isWhy must we go on hating,Why can't we live in bliss It got me thinking about other popular songs about world peace. H

We seem to hear a lot lately about how we should all be more grateful, because gratitude will make us feel better (and be better people too). Actually, it’s true, and there is an excellent blog post on just this topic, written by Joshua Becker: Maybe The Only Thing We Really Need is More Gratitude . Knowing that gratitude is good for us is a great first step, but how do we go about becoming more grateful? Especially in our hectic and time-crunched lives, it seems like just o

This collection of varied quotes about change was inspired by the first one listed that I saw on a friend’s Facebook page. Each quote provides some food for thought on some aspect of what is really an integral part of the human condition: change. “Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must be prepared for changes.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe “Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” Carol Burnett “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” Norman Vi

I was asked to write about the theme of “just a little light” this month. So many possibilities arose of where I could take it… Let your light shine; Marianne Williiamson’s famous quote, “It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us;” what lights you up? lighten up; take a lighthearted approach; light vs. dark. So many choices. What I landed on is a reflection of the light we all have within us – what my friend, Janet Rozzi , calls our “inner pilot light.” I

Have you ever had one of those days when everything seemed to be going a little (or a lot!) wrong? When you were younger, perhaps someone said to you, “Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed?” or “What’s bugging YOU today??” And, just wondering: did that question ever help you feel better or behave better? Right, probably not. Everyone experiences both little irritations and big problems in life. Why do some people just seem to roll with whatever life throws their way, m

Seems like everywhere we turn lately, we hear some variation on the theme of “becoming more centered” and using meditation and mindfulness to relax and de-stress from our harried and hurried lives. We might wonder: does this stuff really work? And what does it really mean to “be mindful?” What is “centering?” Is it the same thing as meditation? Let’s start with mindfulness. Here’s one definition: Mindfulness is the process of focusing the human brain on what is being experien

Anne Lafleur's latest video talks about a twist on "always looking for the best," which we hear so much about in today's positive thinking psychology. Check out it out on her Youtube channel (approx. 5 minutes): https://youtu.be/bNRKtP40N-0 Here are some quick bullet points that Anne covers in the video: Looking for the good in people is really important. It is a powerful way to cultivate gratitude, and bring out the best in the people around you. It's also really important

There is so much fear in our public conversations these days: fear of our elected leaders, fear of climate change, fear of terrorism, fear of oppression, fear for the economy, fear of changing values, fear of "What will happen if...?" These fears are being given voice all over the place, and I don't think they serve us, either personally or as a wider society. I would like to see the fear-spreading replaced by conversations of what we want and are working toward . Our fears

We hear about love all the time: from songs on the radio to memes on FaceBook, to the latest self-help book telling us how to improve our relationships and love more or better or differently. The headline for a recent commentary in the paper caught my eye: “Let’s learn to live as if we are loved.” The writer, Michael Gerson of the Washington Post, goes on to say… “It is not an easy thing – maybe the work of a lifetime – to live as if we are loved. To quiet the voices of self

“To celebrate” is to do something special or enjoyable for an important event, occasion, or holiday. Many of us have had a month or more of doing just that: parties, concerts, homecomings, special meals, decorations, and gift giving. And hopefully most of it was enjoyable, even amidst the inevitable stress of more baking, more cooking, more shopping, and more of everything . I love to hear about how other people celebrate, so I posed a question on Facebook asking my friends

Life happens. And, let’s face it, life’s happenings aren’t always pleasant, fun, or even comfortable. Sometimes, life’s happenings are painful, unpleasant, or un-fun. If we’re honest, they are always uncertain. I was asked recently, “How are things?” and I found myself pausing and answering another question. My reply: “I’m doing really well.” Because “things” right now are very uncertain, sad, scary, and bordering on crisis. I didn’t want to focus there. Instead, I w

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” ~ Melody Beattie We are heading toward a time of year in America where many of us turn toward gratitude and reflecting on what we are thankful for… at least for one day. But, what if gratitude were a much more frequent practice in your life?

“Beware the barrenness of a busy life” (Socrates) It happened to me again. It kind of sneaks up on me every once in a while. I like to be active, and I want to do so many things, so I fill up every last minute of my schedule. If I see that I have a free hour between 2 pm and 3 pm, I’ll fill it with something. Then I start doing that for evening hours as well: 8 pm to 9 pm, or even later. "What, nothing planned? OK, I'll just take notes on this podcast about social media."

As summer comes to a close, parents and kids alike come face to face with the upcoming school year. Even if we don’t currently have kids in school (or perhaps we never did), we might easily recall the feelings we ourselves may have had about starting a new school year: anticipation, dread, hope, or excitement, to name a few. When I was growing up, we moved a lot. Almost every September, I was starting over at a new school, often in a different state. I had to meet new kids,

Today I want to introduce you to one of my heroes. Brian Johnson has no idea who I am, but I think he's a superstar, and his work is slowly but consistently changing my life. (Here's a link to his YouTube channel .) Basically what he does is find, read, and distill a vast number of books about personal growth and optimal living into formats that are easy to understand and apply. Today's free email from him featured a 10-minute video that summarized a book called Procrastinat

Last Saturday night, I threw a party and no one came. Well, not a party, exactly, but a workshop -- the one on grief and condolences that I’d been writing and talking about for weeks. As I waited for people to arrive, I listened to music, put some finishing touches on my outline for the evening, watched the sunbeams move across the room, and mused about my situation. It's a scenario I'd always feared. I thought it would be devastating. I knew it would bring up deep wounds

Neale Donald Walsch has said, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone,” and Laura Berman Fortgang taught me that “Discomfort equals growth.” I believe and teach both of these concepts, AND at the same time I am very conscious that for me, things could also easily come to a screeching halt at the end of my comfort zone. When I’m uncomfortable, feeling out of my element, I get out of sorts really quickly and want to run and hide! So, I could easily miss out on the oppo

I work at a school where all participants are viewed as leaders. Each of us, in different ways, contribute to making the school a vibrant place every day. Each of us, students and staff alike, in our daily way, offer our gifts and leadership to the school. Our individual contribution makes a difference and together we do great things. One of the great leaders in our school is Mr. Kevin, the head of our school's building and grounds. He is in charge of the campus faciliti