So, Christmas is a couple days away, but I doubt you need me to remind you of that. Here in New York City, much of our daily surroundings are transformed for the Christmas season. Many call it “the most wonderful time of the year”. I have noticed over the past several years that the craze around Christmas seems to be growing. There used to be jokes about starting Christmas festivities before Thanksgiving. Now, it is before Halloween. There is something... Read more
I grew up in West Texas, where it is warm most of the year. Although we do get snow, it is usually one single day and it is burnt off by lunch. When I moved to New York, I had to get used to living in a place that “has all four seasons”. Although New York weather feels like ten months of Winter, ten months of Summer and two minutes each of Fall and Spring. It has taken me a... Read more
Every year, I seem to become fixated with one very specific element of the Christmas season. For evidence of this, see our post from December 2020, Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum. The thoughts and permutations play in my head like so many Christmas carols. This year, it is the one phrase, “the weary world rejoices” from O, Holy Night. It seems like zooming in on something specific helps me to comprehend the whole better. Instead of getting lost and overwhelmed... Read more
From the time we are children, we are taught that hate is bad. No matter what is said or done, we are reprimanded when we respond in hate. That is, generally speaking. A few years ago, our pastor told a story about how his daughter’s class (I think she was in second grade) had a discussion about newly elected President Trump. The teacher had emailed the parents to share some of what was discussed. One of the quotes shared was,... Read more
It is not as easy as it seems to discern between friend and foe. In a world that seems hellbent on destroying itself, a society obsessed with annihilating one another, discerning the difference is vitally important to healthy and vibrant living. Why is it so hard to discover the true nature of our relationships? How do we get this wrong and what can we do to mitigate our mistakes? We are so susceptible to deceit, we are often victimized by... Read more
We all want success. One hundred percent of human beings are chasing after success. Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and MLK, Jr. pursued success. As did Napoleon, every American president, musicians, actors, engineers, pastors, and stay-at-home parents. We cannot help but chase success. It is how we are wired. The question becomes: how do we measure success? The difference between Gandhi and Atilla the Hun was not about a desire for success but the definition for it. Various Measures A few... Read more
In a world where we value control so much it is an assumed obsession, why do we find it so hard to step out of the Victim Circle and into the Freedom Circle? Shouldn’t we be desperate to grab hold of what we can control? But to be human is to be a walking contradiction. Although we are addicted to control and seek it constantly, we are at the very same time terrified of responsibility, accountability, and consequence. The pesky... Read more
With Thanksgiving in the rear view mirror, the holiday season is officially underway. So is the run up for the end of the year. And the beginning of a new one. It has become increasingly fashionable to complain about the negative reality of the current year and plead with the year to come to usher in a season of betterment. One of the wisest things I have ever been told is that we carry ourselves into every season. Therefore, if... Read more
I have always thought of Thanksgiving as the most subtle of holidays. As a kid, Christmas was this wild explosion of excitement. There were gifts, a mysterious visit from Santa in the middle of the night, and ballads unique to the season. Easter always (rightfully) had a dramatic tone, with passion plays always playing a part. July 4th had fireworks, nothing subtle about that. Even New Years has the hoards of people in TimesSquare, squeezing all the intensity we can... Read more
We like to give up. We don’t like to admit it, but the truth is we enjoy bailing. It is one of the best kept secrets of humanity. Such a secret, we often refuse to tell ourselves. But the evidence is overwhelming. We give up at an alarming rate. To be sure, quitting is also painful and annoying. We don’t love it. But I think we do like it a little more than we admit. Here are my thoughts on... Read more
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