“TREAT PEOPLE AS IF THEY WERE WHAT THEY OUGHT TO BE, AND YOU WILL HELP THEM BECOME WHAT THEY ARE CAPABLE OF BEING.” — Anonymous Most of us -if we were lucky- had at least one person who helped guide us while we were growing up. It may have been a parent, a grandparent (as was my case), a relative, a teacher, or a mentor who was not family at all. Usually, it comes down to one person. Sometimes two. At first, they were there physically. They helped us navigate obstacles, sort through confusion, and gently point us in the right direction. Later -after they were no longer present in our daily lives- their influence remained. Their voice became internal. Their guidance turned into something permanent, woven into our conscience, quietly reminding us when a choice felt right… or when it didn’t. So what does this have to do with today’s quote? Everything. When we think back on those people, we remember what they said to us -and just as importantly, what they did not say. We remem...

  LEARNING TO FALL IS PART OF LEARNING TO LIVE Why failure, resilience, and getting back up are not optional skills “… Growing, learning, and evolving is a lifelong process, and we must understand and accept this. If we are truly living, we never stop making mistakes and learning from them. If you have never fallen, you have never learned to get up and continue on. The moment we stop trying because of the risk of being wrong or the fear of what others may say, we have chosen to stop living." The above is mine; I put it into quotes because it comes from something I wrote some time ago. A student read it yesterday, then he asked me what I meant by this statement. Perhaps, with the experience of almost 8 decades of doing just that -falling and getting up- it was not difficult to add a few thoughts to that expression. The answer may seem simple, yet it is never simple. I have barely muddled through my own issues long enough to keep going; for keeping on, I must. The thoughts a...

Yesterday, I was going through some notes to make up for the recent time lost, and came across this little wisdom jewel. It has been several years since I saw it for the first time. As I read it, it began to gain a hold of me; its real message being on point, especially in these times of the “me first” social construct. A good friend related this story to me several years ago, and it impressed me so much that I wrote it down and saved it for some future time. That future moment is now. This is what I wrote down… “My father used to buy basic goods and trinkets -which most often he really did not need- from poor street vendors, usually paying a high price and, sometimes, even paying extra. Then he continued: “I was baffled by this behaviour from someone who worked hard for his money and who did not like to squander it, so I asked him why he did this, and he replied: ‘It is a charity gift, but it is wrapped in dignity, my son”   It has taken several years, with all t...