I was recently inspired by a story of a young climber, Mike Price, who died in an accident on Mount Rainier. The story is told in my friend’s book, The Ledge: An Inspirational Story of Friendship and Survival. In one of his travel journals, Mike wrote that success is not defined by summiting the mountain,...
Tag: art
Who Said You’re Being Silly?
The other day, I was watching a YouTube video of Lynda Barry, painter, writer, cartoonist, playwright, editor and more. She told a story about watching a mother in a restaurant who was busy on her cell phone, while her four-year-old son tried to get her attention. When he couldn’t, he started playing with his food,...
I Wish I Had a Nothing Box
The other day, I watched a video in which a comedian talked about the differences between women’s brains and men’s brains. He explained how men keep each area of their lives in a separate mental box: job, money, wife, kids, etc. And those boxes never touch. Women, he said, have brains like a ball of...
Never Tell Me The Odds
The other day, I listened to a woman who was a 28-year survivor of cancer tell about the day she received her diagnosis. When the doctor gave her the bad news, she started to cry, of course. Then she asked, “What are my odds of survival?” “It’s just a number,” the doctor said. “Then don’t...
Can Art Overcome Hate?
I remember as a child watching the musical South Pacific on TV, and being struck by the song, “You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught.” I was one of those kids who cried often about all the suffering and hatred in the world. I never understood why people couldn’t just follow the Golden Rule and treat...
Love ‘Em or Leave ‘Em – Revisited
I love people who laugh at their own jokes. The harder they laugh, the better. Why shouldn’t we take enjoyment from our own creativity? Why create anything if it doesn’t bring us pleasure? I love people who sing loudly and badly in church. Why? Because they are more concerned with giving praise than in what...
How to Sing, Paint, Write, and Act Your Way To a Fulfilling Life
A few weekends ago, we went to the famous Wildflower Festival in Crested Butte, Colorado. The scenery and flowers were stunning. I took some pretty good pictures, I thought. Then a couple of days later, a friend posted on Facebook some flower pictures she took in her backyard garden, and they blew my shots away....
Is Hope a Strategy?
The other day, I was explaining a hope I had for my business as I was opening a stack of mail. My well-meaning-but-wet-blanket husband repeated his favorite quote, “Hope is not a strategy.” At that moment, I opened an envelope that contained a check from a person I had reached out to with a business...
Buy One and Give One Free
Several years ago, a friend gave me a copy of a book she said changed her life. The book so affected her, that she bought seven copies to give to people she thought might be likewise moved. I was one of those people. And she was right. I’ve often said that book is one of...
Are You Really in Pursuit of Happiness?
This Fourth of July weekend, I’m musing on the Declaration of Independence. What exactly did our Founding Fathers mean by including “the pursuit of Happiness” as one of our unalienable rights? Some say our Founding Fathers were influenced by Francis Hutcheson, an Irish reverend and philosopher, and others who believed that happiness was best achieved...