There are times when the beginning of a matter eludes me. How to start the needed conversation. How to break the too-big task into smaller pieces so that I can see the “Do This First” spot. How to unravel the “Once Upon a Time” of a story so that more than the words Chapter One remains on page one. …
In Others’ Words: When Courage is the Testing Point
There are all sorts of lists of virtues — morally excellent behavior. Some lists are as short as four or seven virtues … some lists go on in alphabetical order. Honesty Kindness Humility Loyalty Selflessness Trustworthiness But when all is said in done — whether you limit your list of virtues to four, as the Greeks did — or expand it …
In Others’ Words: And Forgive Us Our Brokenness
I find myself embracing brokenness more and more. My brokenness. Others’ brokenness. And I also find myself grasping to understand forgiveness … truly comprehend forgiving others. Forgiving myself. The ironic thing is that for so long I aimed for perfection. And I failed. No surprise there, I know. And I thought forgiveness was as easy as hearing someone say “I’m sorry” …
In Others’ Words: The Danger of Precautions
I wish I hadn’t always been so cautious in years past. I was a bit of a “tell me the rules and I’ll follow them” kind of person. Let me put it this way: I was a safety patrol girl in school — the one wearing the neon orange belt and helping other kids cross the street. Do they even have …
In Others’ Words: Eternal Hope
There are some days that I need to lean into hope more than other days. Not just for myself … I’m hoping for the ones I love. Hoping for new beginnings. Hoping for healing. Hoping for dreams to come true. Hoping for life to be easier . . . or more satisfying . . . for the pieces to fall …
In Others’ Words: Time to Start Thinking About One Word for 2016
One Word. Yes, it’s that time of year again when I prompt you to think about selecting one word to focus on during 2016. This is my eleventh year to focus on one word — and right up until last week, I was thinking, “I’ve got no idea what my word for 2016 is going to be!” Not. A. Clue. And then …
In Others’ Words: The Small Steps of Courage
I used to think of courage as this big thing … something that was often beyond me. Or something that I had to wait for … or work up to. Kind of like: Give me a few more minutes … or a few more hours … or a week or two, and I’ll be courageous. And then I learned courage …
In Others’ Words: Yogi Berra and making “wrong mistakes”
In Yogi Berra’s world, there were mistakes … and there were “wrong mistakes.” The Major League Baseball Hall of Famer, who died on Tuesday, September 22, was known for his Yogi-sms. I scrolled through a list of 30 of his most memorable quotes, and settled on “We made too many wrong mistakes.” There’s something to what he said. There are mistakes …
In Others’ Words: The Temptation of Bitterness
When I hear cautions against bitterness, I immediately think of the admonition: See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. (Hebrews 12:15 NIV) And Martin Luther King, Jr. got it right when he called bitterness a temptation — a choice we wrestle with …
In Others’ Words: Taking the World as We Find It
Run across any thorns lately? Did you hear a no when you were so, so hoping for a yes? Did a family member or a friend disappoint you — or did you disappoint yourself? Were you overlooked for a longed-for recognition or promotion or award? Did you argue so badly with a loved one that reconciliation seems impossible? Were you accused …