I remember the joy I felt when I thought of my beautiful little girl turning two just before the new baby joined our family for Christmas. We were creating our dream of a house full of children and it was a very happy time for me. But disaster struck in my fourth month of pregnancy. My husband had a mental …
The Daffodil Principle
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, “Mother, you must come and see the daffodils before they are over.” I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. Going and coming took most of a day–and I honestly did not have a free day until the following week. “I will come next Tuesday, …
Listening to Myself
Yesterday I was talking with a friend who asked my opinion about something he was dealing with. As I shared my thoughts I realized that what I was saying was something that I, also, needed to hear! His situation and mine were different, but the solution was similar. I was surprised and pleased to listen to myself and pay attention …
Tear Down the Walls
I came home from work. There was a note on our apartment door, “Workers will be installing partitions on the balconies on July 21st and 22nd”. It was the 20th, but when I entered our apartment, there were two men on our balcony, putting the final touches on the new wall that separated our side of the balcony from our …
She Never Left My Side
“What’s so special about him? He has a lisp!” Asked my girlfriend’s mother as I pulled away in my car after our “initial introduction.” However, a few days later when I rang that same doorbell, my future mother-in-law “melted” when she answered the door, where I stood holding a single red carnation just for her! Sharon and I dated seriously …
The Magic of Soul Recognition
Imagine this: the streets of Port-au-Prince, Haiti—Cite Soleil, to be exact. A slum of seemingly infinite size and unimaginable poverty. Dusty, litter-lined streets with scantily clad people aimlessly milling about. Children scampering in grimy clothes, perhaps a teeshirt or shorts, no diapers whatsoever, and shoes a rarity. The air is hot and muggy, with the scent of unidentifiable debris and …
A Life of Freedom
We all know someone who feels unhappy, frustrated, or even numb. They are losing themselves to a life from which they simply cannot break free. No matter how they try, they can’t change their situation. Or maybe they have reached the point of giving up and staying stuck. I can’t even begin to count the number of times I hear, …
Seek Happiness
Even though I was only seven years old, my childhood ended abruptly on April 17, 1975. That was the day the Communist Khmer Rouge guerilla forces captured the city of Phnom Penh and Cambodia fell under the control of a murderous regime whose reign of terror resulted in the deaths of almost two million Cambodians. As the mostly teen-aged soldiers …
Enough Is Enough
What does it take to make you happy? How much do you have to have to be grateful? To the barefoot man, happiness is a pair of old shoes. To the man with old shoes, it’s a pair of new shoes. To the man with new shoes, it’s more stylish shoes. And, of course, the fellow with no feet would …
Creating A Vision And Stickin’ To It
A couple of years before moving from California to Austria, the neighbor next door to my wife’s parent’s house in Austria – a father and husband – committed suicide, leaving behind much sorrow and financial debt for the family. I’m a very empathetic person, so naturally I felt very sad for the family for their loss. While I barely knew …