I was chatting with some friends the other day, and someone said something about how people get wiser as they get older. “Not necessarily.” I said. “You have to choose to get wiser.” They asked me to elaborate, so here’s what I mean . . . Unlike knowledge, which can be accumulated deliberately and systematically,...
This post originally ran April 30, 2022 I raised my kids to follow their hearts; to trust their intuition. I truly believe our gut responses are often the best. So why is it so hard sometimes to just “go with the gut”? Why do our minds feel the need to try to override our intuition?...
A year ago, my husband and I were visiting our daughter, and the three of us made a quick trip to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. My daughter may have read one or two of the Little House books as a child, but didn’t have much association with the author, so...
My birthday is coming up soon, and since I’m too happily busy this year to plan anything, I’ve instead enjoyed looking back on past memorable birthdays and what they meant to me. This morning, this memory came to mind: It was my 12th birthday, I think. My mom always hosted a joint birthday party for...
This post originally ran on July 1, 2017 This Fourth of July weekend, I’m musing on the Declaration of Independence. What exactly did our Founders mean by including “the pursuit of Happiness” as one of our unalienable rights? Some say they were influenced by Francis Hutcheson, an Irish reverend and philosopher, and others who believed...
Whew, what a crazy week! I feel like I say that a lot. Wait, I do say that a lot. My friends and family have come to expect crazy weeks from me, which is why the many months I took off last year to address health and personal issues was so unsettling for them and...
My friend Bruce Adolphe is a world-renowned composer. In reading through his new book, Visions and Decisions: Imagination and Technique in Music Composition, I wondered how many of his insights I’d be able to apply to my own art. I’m not a musician, after all. While I did enjoy playing the piano well into my...
On a recent trip to New York City, I spotted a young man studying a musical score on the subway, deep in concentration. I’ve traveled to New York nearly a dozen times, so I know it’s not uncommon to board the train and see musicians setting their instruments beside them on a seat, or to...
The other night, I attended an “evening of creation” designed to help us access our “practical spirituality.” One of the presenters, Jonathan, played music for us on a handpan drum. I wasn’t familiar with the instrument, and the sound was ethereal and relaxing. Jonathan was one of those splendid individuals who manage to come across...
“I paint to let my soul know I am listening.” That’s a comment a friend posted on one of my social media pages in response to one of my blog posts. I’ve seen her work, and its beautiful and unique. It brings me joy just looking at it, probably because my soul can feel the...