I always liked that Beatles song. Most of them I’m ambivalent about, but something about the tune and truth of having strength in numbers makes me feel safe in the world today. Like many of you, I have groups of friends for different aspects of my life. I have church friends, work friends, former work friends, political friends (former political friends), my mom’s friends, my brothers’ friends and my sweet neighbors. I even have a small group of more mature friends whose company I love. In the midst of it all, I have a small group of trusted friends that […]
Radio Show
It never hurts to keep looking for sunshine
“It never hurts to keep looking for sunshine.”—Eeyore It has been a week. I can’t remember when, in the course of a holiday weekend, I have seen so much sadness and pain and frustration and disappointment. I’m not sure if it’s the moon in its phases, or life is just hard with all that is expected of us. Kids back in school, football teams winning and losing or financial issues that seem to plague even the most stable of families, or kids gone bad and parents are at wits end. Life is hard—I know you know that—and, although we don’t […]
You’ve Got the Power
When I was younger I often heard the phrase, You’ve Got the Power. In actuality I think it was a commercial I heard on the radio, but I remember that it was also told to me to encourage me to move forward in whatever I was doing, because in the end you and I have the power to do amazing things in our lives and for others. Power – Bing Dictionary defines power as: Capacity to do something: the ability, strength Strength: physical force Control and influence over other people and their actions Power: we often think of others having […]
The most ridiculously limiting, prehistoric assumption
The most ridiculously limiting, prehistoric assumption that many of you have is that what you’ve always dreamed of doing will not make you enough money, so you settle for something less than your heart desires and less than you deserve, all because you assumed or were told that (fill in the blank) won’t make you any money. What sparked this idea was that in one of my stories I came across a great quote by Tama Kieves who said, “I don’t know what your block is, but I changed my entire life (and the lives of thousands of others) by […]
Choose Hope
Like everyone else years ago I was so sad to hear about Robin Williams’ death, and I wanted to bring someone on the show to talk about depression and fear and other maladies that cause people to lose hope. I don’t want to focus on sadness–we have enough of that going on in the world. What I really want to say would be a rant about getting help, seeing your life for what it is and making the hard decision to fight to live another day; but that would add little value to the conversation, so I’ll hold my tongue […]
Manners Cost Nothing and Are Priceless
When was the last time someone said “thank you” or “please” to you? Really think about the last time someone out of the clear blue said “thank you” for something kind you did for them or said “please” when something was needed. Oh no! You can’t think of a recent time when someone said those magical phrases in a sincere manner? Well, sadly, that is my point today. It seems so rare to hear a kind word of thanks, praise, appreciation or encouragement that is not forced or contrived to get you to do something for someone. So with that […]
May you stay in one place forever…
The other day I was reading some information for a speech I am working on, and I came across perhaps the most awful thing that could ever be said about someone and it is from the Tartar tribe of Central Asia – they say that prior to battle, the Tartar Tribes of Central Asia used to make a pronouncement over their enemies. It had nothing to do with their ability to overpower or wipe out their enemy in battle. Instead, their curse was this, “May you stay in one place forever.” Their curse was that their enemy would stop learning, […]
Let your light shine
Have you ever met anyone who just seemed to light up a room? Just by their presence they bring a new dimension to the group. Sometimes these folks are loud in personality and style, and sometimes they are on the quiet side, but what they bring is a feeling of joy in the truest sense of the word, and they radiate an aura of calm and peace and tranquility…and, frankly, they are just great people to be around. Now you may be saying, “Well, Deb, bring them on, because we all could use a friend like that!” I agree, and […]
Patience, Perseverance and Practice
The other day I saw a man who had the telling scar of a knee replacement, and what made it unusual is that I noticed his knee was stiff and not very workable, so he had learned to swing it in a walking motion instead of walking with a normal gait. When I asked about his surgery, he admitted that he had not done all the exercises that were required right after the surgery and the knee healed in a stiff position. I am sure that he could stretch the muscles and sinew to make his walking easier and more […]