Giving Back

Old memories can be wonderful, and, they can be difficult. Remembering a old rough relationship with a family member can remind us of how good we have it currently. Joan talks about an old TV show reminded her of times past and how much better her life is now.

Joan: One of my friends stopped by my house this past weekend and when I answered the door, she was surprised to see tears streaming ...

Intuition can be a tricky thing, mostly because we sometimes push it aside. Afterall, it warns us…and maybe we don’t want to hear that warning. Joan had an experience many of us have had: pushing past her intuition only to learn her gut was right all along.

Joan: Throughout the last decade, my professional life has taken many twists and turns. There are times that I operate ...

Let's talk about our rights and our freedoms.

How many were free to shop at a Wal-Mart last two Sundays ago without fear that El Paso copycat would announce himself with the staccato fire of an AR-15?

You saw the stampede in the theater district in New York City when a motorcycle backfired. And the evacuation of a Wal-Mart in Union because of a false report.

We may have freedoms, but ...

What I’ve learned in my travels to Europe and South America in the last couple of years is how refreshing it is to get away from English.

Not being able to understand the banter of language around you is a chance to luxuriate in your own thoughts. You are in a crowd, but not part of it, free of the irritating banality of most conversations.

In a strange land I can sit and be oblivious ...

I have never ridden in the back seat of my car. It is not high on my list of things to do before I die.

Yet here I am, somewhere outside Kearney, Nebraska, wedged tight behind the driver’s seat, duffle bags and backpacks piled high on the seat to my right, a garbage bag full of oily food wrappers, spent water bottles, and rotting orange peels on the floor between my feet awaiting discard ...

I am an artist. It says so on my T-shirt.

My colorful shirt, which significantly inflates my position in life, confers great status. For one, it announces that I am a musical performer at the Montclair Jazz Festival. This distinguishes me from the thousands of other festival goers who only get to enjoy a great day of music, not make it.

More importantly, wearing my artist T-shirt ...