BIG GEORGE

Never met him, that is,

until the day I bought his truck.

“As is,” the clause said,

the one on the bill of sale.

It meant once I signed,

any problems with the truck

were now my problems. Not his.

Sure enough. Something came up. 

Something big. Very big.

Something neither of us saw coming.

I called him. We talked.

“Let’s split it,” I said.

“No. This is mine to fix.”

Somebody told him,

“It’s that guy's problem!”

“He signed the paper. A deal’s a deal.”

“Isn’t about the money, it's about trust."

He fixed it. Paid the bill. Even laughed.

Never once mentioned the “As is.”

"Big George." That’s what I call him now.

"Big George."

YOU, TREE, INSPIRE ME

By breathing so the world can breath,

you inspire me to live with such symbiotic generosity.

By spreading your branches so birds can sing in your spaces,

you inspire me to expand all of my being for others.

By creating crooks and crannies where little ones can nest,

you inspire me to be a homing place for the children of all.

By holding fast the ground between and beneath your feet,

you inspire me to send roots deep into the soil of community.

By seeding acorns and chestnuts, pinecones and samaras,

you inspire me to give of my lifeblood for future generations.

By bending to breezes and dancing through storms,

you inspire me to live in harmony in the midst of adversity.

By glorifying skies with greens and golds, oranges and reds,

you inspire me to delight in sharing my colors with the world.

By blessing with beauty the eyes of creatures great and small,

you inspire me to see and celebrate the bedazzling in all.

By giving shelter and sanctuary to eagle and chickadee alike,

you inspire me to live without prejudice, bias or ism.

By living with dignity be it summer, winter, spring or fall,

you inspire me to trust beyond this moment of my life.

By sharing your leaves with creatures of the soil beneath you,

you inspire me to provide for those I neither see nor know

By blooming where you are, be it mountaintop, plane or valley,

you inspire me to hallow my present station in life.

By offering shade to all that lie beneath your canopy,

you inspire me to rise up and embody compassion for all.

By gifting the world with your presence in life and in death,

you inspire me to do the same.

WHAT MAKES A TOOL A TOOL?

What makes a tool a tool? 

That depends upon how broadly we define “tool,”, right? I think of a tool as anything that is an extension of our bodies that we use to accomplish a desired purpose. A hammer, an Instant Pot, a guitar, a language, a paint brush, a dentist’s chair, a college degree, a laptop, a signature, a skyscraper, a bandwidth, or the Mars rover Sojourner. Tools...all of them. And that’s just a beginning.

Be they simple or sophisticated, tools extend our reach, expand our efficiency, increase our accuracy, broaden our capacities, and even ease the physical demands we place on our bodies. The creation and utilization of them is likely the key promoter of human progress throughout history--and new ones are being invented daily. Why? Because they meet our ever-expanding needs and make things possible that we simply could not accomplish without them. 

 Having said all this, consider your mind (your capacity to think) for a moment. Is it not the most significant tool in our toolbox? By far! Where would we be without it? (Well, let’s not go there.) Fact is, the mind is the tool of all tools. Not only is it the one tool that is absolutely necessary in order to operate (much less invent) all other tools. It’s always readily available, it's extremely user-friendly, and it’s surprisingly programmable. It’s the ideal tool! 

Except for one thing. 

Like all other tools, it needs regular care and maintenance--only more--because of its crucial role vis a vis all other tools and its marvelous potential for our health and wellbeing (think personally and globally). 

Ironically our mind is probably the one tool we least maintain and most neglect--often because it doesn’t occur to us that we can. And must. 

How do we do it? First, let’s acknowledge and appreciate its wonder! Second, let’s set aside time to consciously care for it and keep it sharp. And third, let’s remember that a rusty, dirty, neglected tool isn’t just more difficult or even impossible to use. It can actually be dangerous. 

TODAY.

LET’S GIVE THE WORLD & OURSELVES A GIFT.

LET’S TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE THINK. 

MY MIND

Like a fussing baby,

it wants to feel better but doesn't like to be changed.

Like a toddler on a sugar high,

it much prefers racing around to taking a nap.

Like a testy ten-year old,

it argues with me relentlessly for stay-up-late rights.

Like a freedom-blooded teenager,

its starting-gate position is, "Remember, I'm off leash."

Like an idealistic young adult,

it loves to proclaim, disclaim, exclaim, or just plain claim.

Like a perpetual 39-year old,

it doesn't accept its biological limitations or inevitabilities.

Like a middle-ager exploring a newfound passion,

it puzzles, “But why am I always so tired?”

Like an oft-distracted senior,

it is “in absentia” more often than it admits.

Like a worn and wizened elder,

it is deceptively full of wisdom.

OWN YOUR JOY

Never mind drugs. One of the most mood-altering (and life-enhancing) lessons life has taught me is a deceptively simple yet powerful one: I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR MY OWN JOY. Sounds intuitive, right? But if so, why are so many people so miserable so much of the time?

I think the biggest reason is because we too often base our joy on external circumstances--which, when traced back to their true source we discover, are often of our own making anyway. (While we seldom want to admit this, at the very least, let’s be honest with ourselves! If we don’t do this, we can’t and won’t be honest with others.)

Some people think that others are responsible for their joy (e.g. their boss, spouse, a family, the check-out clerk, all of the above!). Wrong. Some people think their circumstances (or at least the ones that are “beyond my control”) are responsible. Wrong. Some even think God is responsible! Really wrong! Even Jesus believed otherwise (“I’ve said these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be full.” See John 15) In other words, innate joy is already in us. Waiting. For what? Or more importantly, for whom?

Real life examples? Consider Anne Frank (Holocaust diarist), Viktor Frankl (Austrian neurologist/ Holocaust survivor), Nelson Mandela (South African anti-apartheid leader imprisoned for 27 years), and St. Teresa of Calcutta for starters. . . . or maybe your grandmother or uncle or a favorite teacher, etc. Ask yourself, “What has made these people different? Exemplary? Inspirational? In short, they owned their own joy and it impassioned and empowered them well beyond the life trajectories and influence of most of us.

How do you and I access this internally-present joy? A great place to start is to ask ourselves, “What changes right here, right now if I really believe I am completely responsible for my joy?” Ask it repeatedly throughout the day--no matter what. If we do just this one small thing our brains will quickly catch on. We’ve given them a new kind of assignment! They love it! At first, the changes will be internal--the source and genesis of all authentic transformation. Pay close attention to your thoughts. Watch what happens.

Of all the things we can take responsibility for, few if any, have as much positive impact on our lives--and the lives of all others--than owning our own joy. Once you catch this train, hold on!

TODAY.

LET’S GIVE THE WORLD & OURSELVES A GIFT.

LET’S TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE THINK.

WHEN SKIES ARE FALLING

Leafy debris, tree limbs, widow-makers. The sky is falling!

Stately red oaks, blood orange maples and whispy white pines

all contort and cavort in the wild of this windy day.

Fleecy clouds galavant across the Cerulean blue skies

like magnificent wild stallions stampeding on the open range.

Gusts wielding woe with invisible force are down-drafting,

slamming this lake's waters with blow after blow after blow.

Their thrusts are twisting, torquing its shimmery surface,

creating eerie shapeshifters that scuttle wickedly away.

But just inches beneath this silvery skin of liquid,

these immutable waters are as calm and peaceful

as the wheat fields I remember swaying softly in the

afternoon breeze of my grandfather’s Minnesota farm.

In tumultuous times like these, when my insides

feel like the skies above my heart are falling

and treacherous winds of every kind

consort to undo my tenuous sense of wellbeing,

my soul reminds me of my true nature:

I am the bold, bendable, and beautiful trees,

I am the deep, still and serene waters,

I am the gently swaying fields of gold.

This world may wreak havoc upon my spirit,

but in ways I can neither comprehend nor imagine,

I know that I am whole and that all will be well.

To this I cling. For this I sing. To you I bring.

Today.

IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING

In all the English language there’s probably not a single idiomatic saying, aphorism, or expression quite as crazy, useless and potentially confusing as “It goes without saying...” Almost invariably, as soon as someone says it, the next thing out of their mouth is whatever could have--and probably would have served us better if in fact, it had--gone without saying.

The problem is once you blurt out, “It goes without saying,” you put yourself in a double-bind. Either you have to say whatever it is that, just nano-seconds earlier, you had said didn’t need to be said. Or, you decide to take your own advice and shut up which, of course, leaves your listener completely befuddled and hanging mid-thought. Have you ever in your life heard someone say, “It goes without saying…” and then say nothing?

Why then, might someone like me actually use this expression? Maybe it's because I deem something significant to the conversation at hand is so obvious to me that you needn’t waste your breath saying it, while at the same time, it appears to me it may not be quite so obvious to you (as it should be) so I’m going to say it just in case you don’t get it. Rather condescending, don’t you think?

The language we use to communicate with each other reveals a great deal about ourselves. This silly saying is just one example. How often we say things that don’t need saying. Or worse, things that are better NOT said. Period.

TODAY.

GIVE THE WORLD & YOURSELF A GIFT.

TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK.

THE SADNESSES WE CARRY

There are sadnesses we carry within us,

each of us,

all of us.

Sadnesses that not even we may know,

or be in touch with,

or be aware of,

or want to acknowledge,

are here in us

at this very moment.

And they are shaping us,

tugging at our emotions,

twisting our thoughts.

They can be a source of strength

if we will let them.

They can and will teach us much

if we will let them.

What lies beneath each sadness?

What is holding it up?

What is keeping it alive?

What is giving it its security?

What is it waiting for us to release?

And why do I feel a deep sadness

as I see these beautiful autumn leaves

scattered on the ground before me?