When I was a kid in elementary school, I would often slur my “r,” “s,” “th,” and “sh” sounds. These sounds require more precise tongue and mouth movements. Many times children haven’t been naturally exposed to these sounds and need to work to build them up. I would get regularly pulled from class to spend … More No “one size fits all” solutions
The Do-It-Yourself home repair guy on the television was connecting two PVC couplings. He cut here, brushed some adhesive there, and voila, it was done in no time. He made it look so simple. To steal a line from Geico, the U.S.-based auto insurance company, it looked “so easy a caveman can do it.” For … More A piece of cake
I first heard the term mise en place while watching the television show Worst Cooks in America on the Food Network. Chef Anne Burrell introduced the term to a new season’s cast of recruits: people of various ages and professions who had shown themselves to be inexperienced, inept, or exaggeratedly careless cooks. At first, I … More What a Chef Can Teach Us about Writing
You can work on improving your purpose and focus. You can work on your discipline and work ethic. You can even work on your trustworthiness and integrity. But when it comes to resilience, get ready for more than a few challenges. We’ve been writing this month on The Heart of the Matter on resilience. Many … More Losing my patience!
Good morning everyone! Erin is enjoying a bit of down time so I’m jumping in today to cover her regular Tuesday post. What follows is a true story about facing (certain?) death and coming out on the other side stronger…while carrying ahead a slightly less dramatic viewpoint that allows for a giggle or two to … More Terror on the Hiking Trail
My sons were both excited, my daughter a bit less, but she was being a good sport. They wanted to see the waterfalls. Our kids were all relatively young and we had billed up the falls and our trip to the mountains for weeks. We were visiting the Shenandoah National Park in North Central Virginia. … More Running out of gas
I suspect we all realize that when we consider growth, no matter what aspect of our life we happen to be focused on, there is a realization that growth means action. Doing the same thing over and over, sitting and wanting things to happen but ignoring the effort needed to make things happen, or even … More The Friendship Village
I was tiring. I had run a strong two and a half miles, but I was struggling. I was on my high school cross country team, and I had just over a half mile to go to reach the finish line. The pack of runners that had started the race were strung out in a … More Making a run for it
Let me just say up front there is absolutely no point to this story. Writing the Chili Dog Guy story last week reminded me of one of my favorite side jaunts. On my five-day guided expedition climb on Mt. Rainier in 1999, the first day out we climbed from Paradise Inn at 5,400 feet up … More On the Way to the Top
Are you aware of this phrase- quietly quitting? If you are employed I suspect that you’ve heard it. Maybe if you are recently retired, or coming up to that momentous decision you’ve also heard it. Maybe, secretly perhaps, you are in the midst of your own quiet quitting journey…I had no idea what this was … More Quietly Quitting
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