“The way to know life is to love many things.” ~Vincent van Gogh, Dutch impressionist painter Loving many things = knowing life. Hhhhm. There’s a Greek word for “know”: epiginosko, which means to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know well, to percieve, by sight, by hearing … to understand. Expanding that initial equation a bit (which is a reduction of van …
In Others’ Words: Worry … or Not
“Worry is like a rocking chair: it gives you something to do but never gets you anywhere.” ~Erma Bombeck, American writer & humorist So … I worried some this past weekend. To be honest, I went several rounds with worry. And while I wouldn’t say worry won, there were times that worry backed me into a corner. I kept reminding …
In Others’ Words: Challenges
“When people keep telling you that you can’t do a thing, you kind of like to try it.” ~Margaret Chase Smith, former Republican senator for Maine I admire people who take the word “can’t” and turn it into a great big “Oh yes, I can!” Like Helen Keller. Or Erik Weihenmayer. You probably recognize Helen Keller’s name and know she’s …
In Others’ Words: Goal or Obstacle
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal.” ~Henry Ford, American industrialist I could make my point today talking about football. But I won’t. Even though I found a great photo of the goal line, I won’t talk about my favorite team (the Denver Broncos). I won’t talk about Tim Tebow … or …
In Others’ Words: At Home
“Make your house interesting — not perfect.” ~Emily Henderson, stylist One thing I know for certain: My house is not perfect. But you know what? Mulling this quote over for a few minutes … I also am certain that my home is interesting. In a disorganized, my-house-won’t-ever-be-featured-in-Better Homes and Gardens magazine kind of way. Walk through my house and you’ll …
In Others’ Words: Bold
“Laugh at yourself, but don’t ever aim your doubt at yourself. Be bold. When you embark for strange places, don’t leave any of yourself safely on shore. Have the nerve to go into unexplored territory.” -Alan Alda, actor I like bold people. Those friends who run ahead of me, then stop, look back and ask, “What are you waiting for? …
In Others’ Words: Ninety-three
“May you live all the days of your life.” ~Jonathan Swift, Anglo-Irish satirist My mother-in-law celebrates her 93rd birthday today. That’s her in the photo, getting ready to blow out the candles of her cake. And yes, she got ’em all blown out in one try! As she reminisced last night, she recounted how she was born several days before …
In Others’ Words: Snow
“I used to stare up at the sky trying to see where the snowflakes were born. I could do it for hours. Well, minutes. But it was always the waiting that was the most fun.” ~Author unknown, from a package of Starbucks coffee, 2010 The longer I’ve lived in Colorado, the more I’ve come to love snow. I love …
In Others’ Word: Hero
“A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” ~Joseph Campbell, American writer & lecturer My friend’s son was killed in Afghanistan on October 22. As I write this, she is meeting the plane that brought his body back to the States. Her son laid down his life for others for others. For …
In Others’ Words: Friday
“Only Robinson Crusoe had everything done by Friday.” ~Author Unknown Ain’t it the truth? I tend to evaluate the week by what I haven’t accomplished. I look at my To Do list and see all that’s left undone. The result: frustration. Maybe I need to put a warning label at the top of my list. Something like: WARNING: It …