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Explore living a more thriving, creative, meaningful life, even in today’s crazy, unpredictable, sometimes pull-your-hair-out times.
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Growing high/growing low
Most trees and plants grow by reaching upward toward the light while sinking roots into the darkness of the earth. We grow as we look upward and let our hearts expand with light and joy. And it feels good to feel rooted as well. But there’s another growth path...
Storying a more meaningful life (and a tribute to Juliet Bruce)
Stories teach. Stories heal. Stories transform. Working with stories, both ours and others, can help us find meaning and live a more vibrant life. And stories may help us prepare for death. I don't speak about that last from experience. For years I have preached,...
The Courage to Be Mediocre
Does the idea of being mediocre stop you from trying to do the creative thing you've always wanted to do? If so, join the club. The fear of never-being-good-enough can become our bullet-proof reason to not experiment and explore a new area where we’re not going to...
Overwhelmed? It’s OK to “Cry Uncle!”
I had tea this week with a close friend, one of the most kind, competent, and generous people I know. Also one of the most ill. In the ideal world, she would just have one job: her own healing, but in this world, she has to handle finances, deal with a big home...
Surviving Mile 19
"Hitting the wall" is the term runners use to describe the moment when the bottom seems to fall out of their stamina, major exhaustion sets in, and doubt may surface about whether it's even worth continuing. Statistically, it's most likely to happen around Mile 19....
When crazy is sane (or a dog’s life)
Have you ever noticed that sometimes the craziest things we do turn out to be the most sane? Acquiring an animal can be like that. I don't think I've had a clean-floor day since my springer spaniel twins came bounding into my life four years ago. But for my sister,...
Enjoying the dog days of summer (a pause)
The dog days of summer are here, but as our temperatures in the Northwest head toward 90 (remember, few of us have air conditioning), our dogs are wilting with the rest of us. Seems like a good time for all of us to grab a cool drink and do less, unless, of course,...
How to Celebrate a Birthday with 72 Delights
Birthdays are a funny thing. When I was six, a birthday expanded my world. It meant more adventures, a later bedtime, and an allowance. But at sixty, my birthday felt less promising. The end horizon on life felt so much closer. How do we celebrate that? With style,...
Beyond Barbie (What would you say in your speech?)
When I was eight, the girls in my neighborhood loved playing with dolls. I didn’t. I preferred to explore the Connecticut woods and ride around on my Schwinn bicycle. As the girls down the street were unwrapping their first Barbies on a sunny fall day, I cruised...
Let these quotes about the creative process inspire yours
While I know that reading about creativity isn't the same as making something (and reading about writing isn't the same as writing), I love reading quotes by fellow creatives when I can't have my fingers in paint, my hands in the soil, or my wrists on the keyboard....