Toward the end of his life, American psychologist Abraham Maslow (you’ve probably heard of his hierarchy of needs) recognized something interesting. As he studied the things that allow people to become “self-actualized,” or to reach their fullest potential in life, …
I’m declaring 2017 the year of empathy
Other people suck. I haven’t posted much on the blog lately, but it’s not because I haven’t been writing. I’ve actually been writing a lot, but mostly for an online writing course, which has taken up my creative bandwidth for …
Ask a grackle what time it is
Grackles are my favorite birds. You can keep your peacocks and parrots, robins and roadrunners. I’ll take grackles any day. Sure, they’re kind of ugly. They have an abrasive call. They’re annoying and invasive, and they frighten other birds away. …
I’ve stopped trying to be happy. Now I’m doing this.
True confession time: For a period of about three years, I paid a stranger to listen to my deepest, most embarrassing secrets. Part of the arrangement was that he was supposed to give me useful advice without judging me (though …
What you focus on matters…so focus on the BIG things
Happy Doomsday (aka, Election Day)! Now that this day’s finally here, I hereby officially add my name to list of millions worldwide who are excited to see this cosmic joke of an election cycle come to an end (or at …
How to find the meaning in your suffering
Let me tell you about Annie. Annie (not her real name) was the girlfriend of someone in my extended family. A few months after the two of them moved in together, her partner (my family member) was killed in a …
On dying early
On March 28, 1942, an elite but untested force of British Commandos conducted one of the most daring raids ever attempted behind enemy lines during World War II. It happened at a critical moment of the war, as France had …
Floating to enlightenment? What I discovered inside a floatation tank
In my eighth grade English class, when we had finished our daily assignment, we were allowed to read until the bell rang. To facilitate this bonus learning opportunity, our teacher kept a small display of paperback books at the back …
The silly reasons why people stop meditating
A couple of months ago I wrote about why I chose Transcendental Meditation (TM) to become more self-aware and to jump-start my spiritual growth. That article was shared quite a bit on social media and still gets lots of traffic …
The healing power of road trips
In On the Road, Jack Kerouac’s classic American beat novel, Dean Moriarty looks out over the chaotic buzz of Chicago’s nightlife and tells his adventurous friend Sal Paradise that it’s time to go. Where? They won’t know till they get …