There is wisdom in knowing when to take a break. When things feel like too much. When a period of life becomes extra hectic. When a loved one needs some special attention or tending. At that point it’s wise to step back, re-evaluate, and decide whether it might help to cut out some things – even some great things – for a time.… Continue reading
mind
Thought for the Day: Iain Thomas
There is always something to demand our attention. The question remains: is that what we want to focus on? In our busy society, full of diversions and distractions, it is sometimes a moment by moment choice to return our attention to what genuinely matters.
May we all be able to focus on that which is truly important.
And every day, the world will drag you by the hand, yelling, “This is important! … Continue reading
Thought for the Day: Steffens
Frequently, we put so much energy into defending the things we know that we fail to listen to the voices around us. When we do this, we are allowing our certainties to blind us to what may be obvious (or not so obvious) truths.
Whether it’s listening to people question a social norm, to people on the other side of the political spectrum present a policy, to a scientific notion that changes as our knowledge grows, or even listening to our quiet inner voice when the world around us is proclaims widely-accepted orthodoxy, we need to pay attention. … Continue reading
The Importance of Modeling Learning for your Kids
One of the things I strive to instill in my children is that learning is a lifelong endeavor. We will always have things to learn (no one knows everything!). In fact, I often remind them, the more we learn, the more we realize we don’t know. Learning not only teaches us, it helps to ask more and better questions.
So many people in our culture see admitting that they don’t know something as a sign of weakness. … Continue reading
Thought for the Day: Schabacker
What a great perspective as we head into the New Year. May we all look upon each day as a gift we get to unwrap and experience.
This is not to say that days are without their trials, but to remind us that there are also, in each day, unexpected joys. And if we consciously look for those moments of happiness, we will find them.… Continue reading
Thought for the Day: Einstein
We’ll soon head out of town to visit my family. As I reminded my boys about our upcoming trip (so they won’t be surprised when we load them into the car for an 18-hour drive), the first question out of my son’s mouth was, “Have they opened that library near [great-grandma’s] house yet?” At least we’re all clear on our priorities.… Continue reading
Thought for the Day: Emerson
Everything has its beauty. What singular beauty have you noticed and enjoyed today?
“To the attentive eye, each moment of the year has its own beauty, and in the same field, it beholds, every hour, a picture which was never seen before, and which shall never be seen again.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature… Continue reading
A Gift of Mystery Squash
I love winter squash. When a friend offered me some mystery squash, I gladly took three. She explained that a large harvest of volunteer squash had come up in her garden. She had no idea what kind of cross-pollinated squash they might be.
While she warned me that what type of flesh lay inside was a mystery, I felt inspired by Ma in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s The Long Winter:
“Hurry and get the work done,” said Ma.… Continue reading
Don’t Pass Up your Chance to Vote
Election Day is this Tuesday, November 6. My ballot this year was long, including national, state, and local representatives and issues. So many of these issues, on all three levels of government, are big, important, and will impact our day-to-day lives. My friends in other states tell me their ballots are similar.
Some people think only the presidential elections are important. … Continue reading
The Hazards of Cooking with a Child
The other day I was baking with my 5-year-old. We were making Grain-Free Bread (recipe HERE). He was helping me scrape down the sides of my stand mixer (I have an old model of THIS) when suddenly the spatula he was holding went right through the beaters. Yikes!
Thankfully he let go of the spatula as soon as he felt something was off. … Continue reading