Blog

On Being Humble

For many of us the idea of being humble means feeling unworthy, insignificant, and perhaps even in submission to someone or something else. To “eat humble pie is to be forced into submission, apology or retraction.  Yes, these definitions are in the dictionary, but only as secondary definitions.  the primary definition is : not proud or […]

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The beauty of nothingness

This weekend I was in Phoenix, Arizona to receive my Doctor of Divinity.  From my home on the California shoreline to Phoenix I had to cross hundreds of miles of “barren desert.”  How easy it is to overlook the beauty of that barrenness, that nothingness.   On first glance it is easy to miss the

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Memorial Day

Today is the day set aside to honor those who have given their lives for our country.  Please remember that. This is not the day to honor those who survived their service.  I mention this because, as with so many other casually thought of holidays, and even casually used phrases, we get them mixed up, and

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Same mistake, different day.

There is no doubt in my mind you have recognized some “mistake” in your life you have vowed never to repeat, but then, kabam, here it is again, same mistake.  You wonder “did I learn nothing the last time?  What kind of fool am I for repeating that mistake?”  Well, good news, you probably did

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The zen of surfing

One of the really great things about living, as I do, in coastal Southern California is the beach.  I was watching some surfers the other day as they rode the swells on a perfect morning, and as I watched some life lessons we can all embody became clear. To begin riding the waves the surfers

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I yam that I yam

Popeye, right? We are who we are, we do what we do ,we think the way we think and we like what we like because of every experience we have ever had.  Doesn’t matter if we thought of that experience as negative, or positive, doesn’t matter if it was painful or joyful; every experience we

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Decorate your cell

I heard the inspiring Revered Guy Williams speak this weekend.  He always gives me food for thought, and this time it was a line he used which seems so perfect as we think about our lives: “Just because you decorate your cell, does not mean you are free.” Now this may not be original to

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On getting “caught up”

I mean the kind of “caught-up” where the events of everyday life become the driving factor in how we experience our days.  This is all too easy to do: bills become due, unanticipated expenses pop-up, relationships take uncomfortable turns, weather events, even politics and events far removed from what we know of as our day to

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