Archive for Month: January 2024

“Feelings of worth can flourish only in an atmosphere where individual differences are appreciated, mistakes are tolerated, communication is open, and rules are flexible—the kind of atmosphere that is found in a nurturing family.”  Virginia Satir, American author and therapist “The purpose of anthropology is to make the world safe for human differences.”  Ruth Benedict, American anthropologist Evidently, we are suffering from a shortage of nurturing families, and anthropology has failed.  Feelings of worth are Read More

“If the people cannot trust their government to do the job for which it exists – to protect them and to promote their common welfare – all else is lost.”  Barack Obama “You must trust and believe in people or life becomes impossible.”  Anton Chekhov   Here are the results of a 2023 Gallup Poll Survey on Institutional Trust.  The numbers represent the percentage of people in the United States who have a great deal Read More

Every summer, my wife and I visit my childhood friends, Bob and Norma.  Bob lives on 25 acres of farmland near Grand Rapids, Michigan, which includes a small pond with the most delicious blue gills ever hatched.  No hyperbole here.  Bob spends all year catching, cleaning, and freezing the fish so that when we visit, he is prepared for a feast.  Well, we are not the only beneficiaries of his generosity, but he does reserve Read More

“It is through gratitude for the present moment that the spiritual dimension of life opens up.”  —Eckhart Tolle “Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power.  We have guided missiles and misguided men.”  —Martin Luther King, Jr. “Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.”  —Buddha “You have to be in the world to understand what the spiritual is about, and you have to be spiritual in order Read More

As we begin one of the most consequential years in history, I wanted to reflect on three themes that may play a big role in how the year turns out: Access, Excess, and Success.  I’m sure there are many other words that might capture what’s most important at this particular point in history, but these three, for me, seemed to cut to the chase of what we face. The questions I’ve been wrestling with that Read More