Always in motion the future is. — Yoda Everyday, we are faced with deciding our future. When we were younger, the “right” answers may have seemed more obvious. Maybe it had to do with immaturity or a lack of sophistication in our thinking. Perhaps the issue was more universal. In our twenties, we often only have ourselves to consider. No spouse or children yet. Parents in relatively good health. Should we apply for the job? Should we buy or lease? Should we take a roommate? While these were big life choices, they were simple in comparison to the complexity of the decisions we face later in life. Today’s choices are more complex in part because of the impact upon our…

The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson. — Tom Bodett It is tempting to treat the tests in life like dogs that beg for scraps of our attention. Too often, we sustain them on a diet of negativity. We bemoan what we believe is our undeserved fate. “Why has this trial befallen me? How could he/she/they do this to me?” Our thoughts are dominated by how our vision of perfection is being destroyed by (or at the very least inconvenienced by) the world about us. We complain, gossip, and attempt to build…

“In the space between chaos and shape there was another chance.” — Jeanette Winterson, The World and Other Places: Stories As sometimes happens on damp winter days in the Midwest, this day started with a spectacular sunrise. The cerulean sky was embellished with extravagant ribbons of fuchsia and amber. The very tree tops were ablaze with color. It lasted 60 seconds. Maybe two minutes. We have previously discussed the uncomfortable nature of being in the hallway. Of how challenging it can be moving between two places mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. So disagreeable in fact, that at times, we race past it as quickly as the situation will allow. We take the first option offered to us…

Under the category of things I haven’t figured out (yet) is the distinction between lucky and blessed. People seem to use those words interchangeably, their choice seemingly owing to their comfort in explaining that which they experience, but for which they are not directly responsible. Regardless of attribution, these moments, where the universe conspires in our favor, present themselves like a camera lens coming into crisp focus. The arduous is simplified. The elusive is revealed. The obstacle is removed. In these moments, we are grateful. This gratitude begets a desire to honor the gift, acknowledge the fortune. Do we say we are lucky because we can’t abide the thought of a deity who plays favorites? Do we say…