Dichotomy is a division or contrast between two things represented as completely opposite. We humans can be pulled into thinking things are either black or white. Comparing opposites can lead to having a rigid perspective on life. I observed this type of thinking while having a discussion with my...
This word, adventure, can be defined in many ways. The traditional definition is an unusual, exciting, and typically hazardous experience or activity. What really defines adventure to me is uncertainty in motion. The most significant moments in my life are never predictable or safely contained. We push the limits...
While mowing the front yard, I miscalculated and slammed the mower into the gas light pole. It’s a remnant of days gone by, long since abandoned. When I hit the pole with a bang, time stood still. I was transported back to a moment in my childhood. Not more...
This last Sunday was the feast day for one of the most influential people in my life. It has been 15 years since Danny passed, but he is never far from my thoughts. I had the honor of speaking at his funeral with over 1100 people in attendance. The...
We use words to express our thoughts and feelings. Many become our keywords for life! (tee hee) When those words become overused, they lose their meaning. A friend pointed this out recently, using the word trauma as an example. After overusing the word as the source of a problem,...
We had our 12-year-old grandson over this week, so we put him to work in the garden. A teenage friend was with him, so they went as instructed to pick up soil from the garden center. I was working at the time, but I heard that our grandson stumbled...
Everyone has their own unique human design features. One specific to me seems more like a rule! (tee hee). In essence, inserting myself into situations can lead to a negative outcome. Things don’t go that smoothly unless I am first invited. The question of what is an invitation has...
Self-indulgence defines behavior with the sole purpose of gaining pleasure for the self. Self-indulgent behavior can also involve not doing something. It’s easy to confuse the search for happiness with the feeling of instant gratification. Feeling pleasure from doing whatever you want is almost impossible for an empath. Self-indulgence...
“Cognitive dissonance is basically this phenomenon whereby we have a natural drive for consistency, in that our belief system must be consistent with itself and it must be consistent with our actions,” says Matt Johnson PhD. These days consistency is a rarified condition of life on Earth (tee hee)....
The word meaning is to determine or identify the essential qualities. Existential mattering, coherence, and a sense of purpose are three major predictors of life’s meaning. But according to Pew Research, there are three top answers to the question of the meaning of life. Family or relationships, career, and...
