If someone asks for an exit interview or closure talk, show up for it and let them take the lead.  At the end, ask if they’ve addressed all concerns and are they complete.   Because I thought I did that once and apparently I did not.  I can be very oblivious and self centered. I don’t do it on purpose.  I never mean to hurt the ones I love. However, I recognize it’s their issue and not mine if they let me leave without being complete.

“Shamanism and sacred living is not about blissing out on nature, romping with your power animals and hugging trees – it’s about empowering yourself and opening your eyes to the world and the illusions the consumer society has spun you.  It’s about de-culturing yourself – shamans and medicine people are not social animals.  For by de-culturing yourself you get to know what is truly real in life; the Buddha didn’t become the Buddha by deeply believing he really had to have a nice holiday or a new car.” –Nicholas Breeze Wood, Editor of Sacred Hoop Magazine“

God sometimes removes a person from your life for your protection.   Don’t run after them.  Rick Warren

“I don’t care if you’re black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich or poor.  If you’re nice to me, I’ll be nice to you.  Simple as that.”  Eminem
“Now to go one further and be nice to those whom are not so nice to me…”  Tod McNeal

Do you ever notice that when a tragedy strikes, there’s always a big outcry and blame against those who don’t appear to be grieving as someone else thinks they should grieve?  Having worked 22 years as a criminal defense paralegal and having seen tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of gruesome evidence photos and dealt with thousands of grieving victims and family members,  I know what I’m talking about.   In the face of the unexpected death of a loved one, or anyone, everyone reacts differently.  Someone can be in or out of shock and not seem affected by it.  Someone can be in or out of shock and ranting and screaming and crying and wailing.  A group can be sitting on a park bench across the river from the smoldering Twin Towers in  9/11’s most controversial photo having a pleasant conversation, appearing oblivious to the horror of the background.   Only the most ignorant of critics would presume to know what is going on in anyone’s mind in any given moment guided only by the expressions on their faces and by their actions. Continue reading →

I had a late night reading with Domino this week.  She’s been with Dennis for 5 years.  When they met, they’d both just gotten divorced and he’d just moved to Florida.  She was thrilled to find a man who didn’t drink himself into a stupor every night and who had a good job.  So good a job, in fact, that when he moved in, he suggested Domino quit her job and go back to school to get her degree.  It was perfect.  Domino couldn’t quite believe her luck.  Then one day she came home to find a process server looking for Denny.  Apparently he owed about $41,000 in back child support.  She didn’t even know he had kids.  The legal system had caught up with him and were garnishing his bank account and his wages.  He did what any self respecting, responsible man would do.  Wait, no he didn’t; instead, he quit his job. Continue reading →

I love it when I think I have a problem then a man with a screwdriver and saw shows up to let me know it’s not a problem at all.  As usual, it’s just a matter of the right tools and the right know how.  Just like Life.  Imagine that.

It may be that the satisfaction I need depends on my going away, so that when I’ve gone and come back, I’ll find it at home. Rumi

You have never really lived until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.