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Desired Things
“Silver-white winters that melt into springs These are a few of my favorite things” – My Favorite Things, Rodgers and Hammerstein Favorite things. Desired things. A heart’s desire. In 1927, Max Ehrmann wrote Desiderata (Latin: “desired things”) as a poetic call to action. Contrary to the implication of the title, these things were not things at all in the physical sense. Rather, it listed ways of thinking and living, perhaps even acts of faith, that enabled contentment. As we wait for this winter to (please) melt into spring, I wanted to explore the wisdom of the eight stanzas and nearly twice as many independent directives of Desiderata. It begins with…
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Fill the Pot
After the first of the year, it seemed that all water cooler conversations sunk into frustrations about having fallen away from routines. In truth, the lament isn’t actually the absence of a routine. It’s that we traded a habit of self-care for something else. It’s free weights swapped for flannel pajamas, cardio for hot cocoa, and regular rest for movie marathons. Any time we say we are out of our routine, what we are really saying is that we have let go some element of self-care that we had previously committed to. Regrettably, resuming a routine of self-care is always more difficult than moving away from it. (How is that…
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All Aboard
“I hear the train a comin’ It’s rolling round the bend…” — Johnny Cash, Folsom Prison Blues Human beings take up their own place, time, and space like all physical things. From a singular point of view, it may seem at times that our needs do not align with the desires of those around us. We operate under the illusion that the confluence of our lives is to be like a grand rail station…each of us moving forward with a predetermined schedule and pace. Each dutifully keeping to their own tracks. Maybe from a distance, life appears that way. But when you’re at street level, it can seem random and chaotic. All decisions become a different stop along the tracks. Should we keep this job or pursue…
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Contribution vs. Investment
There is an oft told fable about a chicken and a pig discussing a meal of ham and eggs. Full of ideas about the future, the chicken suggests they should open a restaurant together. The pig considers the idea with less enthusiasm and points out to the hen that, while she would be involved in the effort to purvey ham and eggs, the pig would be committed. This story is generally used to illustrate the differing levels of commitment people can have to a situation often with the intent of securing deeper commitment from the audience to a particular cause. However, in the context of a discussion about peace of mind, it becomes a cautionary tale. Involved vs.…
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Keeping Peace
Things have been tricky lately. Certainties seem uncertain. A bit like freshman Algebra, it feels like life has more variables than constants. Not knowing what Santa will bring you is one thing–the uncertainty of a future delight. But future mysteries in our jobs, relationships, and even the global community are different. Uncertainty in areas of our lives in which we’re more heavily invested can really disturb our peace of mind. Over the next few days, I’m going to share about peace of mind in two parts. First, in honor of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, two ways to think plus two ways to act when faced with challenges in our relationships (including sharing meals with your parents and extended…
