Saving one dog will not change the world, but surely for that one dog, the world will change forever. -- Karen Davison For a time, I headed an animal welfare organization called Whidbey Animals' Improvement Foundation (WAIF) on Whidbey Island in the Northwest. The work could … [Read more...]
Managing Corners
I like writing about big turning points, where professional and personal lives coalesce, where the boundaries are coming down, and you're faced with a set of choices which will change life forever. Tana French My mother is a smart woman. She doesn’t always know it -- who … [Read more...]
Life’s Imperfections
Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything, That's how the light gets in. Leonard Cohen Okay, I admit it. We have more dogs than we should. Four to be exact. But what’s the alternative? Our animals needed homes. They … [Read more...]
Mortality’s Lessons
The hardest part of our mortality is recognizing just that. I have given lots of thought to the beyond as I suppose many of you have. It makes me anxious, I must admit. Where will I land? Where will those I love land? The unknown has a way of landing us sideways, sometimes upside … [Read more...]
Beyond the Door
"Be an opener of doors” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson We are often our worst enemy. Plagued with uncertainty, we question the possibility of what lies beyond a threshold we have yet to cross or even imagine. What stops us is usually the overblown fear of some imagined beast. If we are … [Read more...]
Weed or Flower?
Those who don’t believe in magic, will never find it. Roald Dahl Rudy, our gardener, looked at me perplexed as we both kneeled in the garden. Weed or flower? He asked, his English as broken as my Spanish. I shook my head yes, then no. He smiled, then shook his head in … [Read more...]
The Happy Place
You can't calm the storm, so stop trying. What you can do is calm yourself. The storm will pass. - Timber Hawkeye Serenity can have a way of escaping our grasp. Truth be known if we try too hard, it does exactly that. We just get in the way. For me, getting in the way happens … [Read more...]
The Antagonist As Helper
He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves, and sharpens our skill. Our antagonist is our helper. Edmund Burke Opinions are abundant. Given room, but some necessary boundary, opinions help shape a road worth traveling. Listening, if we consciously take the time, is an … [Read more...]
The Power of the Curve
“When all the details fit in perfectly, something is probably wrong with the story.” ― Charles Baxter, Burning Down the House: Essays on Fiction As humans we try to fashion the road to perfection. We are souls, actually, who seek perfect lines and symmetrical fits that come … [Read more...]
The Road to Illumination
“The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or … [Read more...]
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