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Small changes
“Few of us will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.” ~John F. Kennedy Sometimes I’m completely stalled by the idea that it would take a huge effort to make a change in this troubled, turbulent world of ours. It’s much easier to sit in front of the TV or my computer while I criticize politicians or complain about everything else that’s gone wrong. But as today’s quote reminds us, each of us has a sphere of influence in our own…
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Social studies
“The quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives.” ~Esther Perel, author and psychotherapist Yesterday, Doug and I toured the Ford Motor Company’s brand-new world headquarters in Dearborn with a couple of friends we’ve known since our college years. The grand opening of the building was crowded with attendees, making it hard to fully appreciate its impressive architecture. But the real highlight for me was spending the afternoon with our old friends. Lately I’ve been seeing more articles on the benefits of nurturing an active, in-person social life. Medical experts report that people who socialize regularly are healthier — and live longer. An active “social life” also includes…
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Self-Help Book Club reminder
“Healthy striving is self-focused: “How can I improve?” Perfectionism is other-focused: “What will they think?” ~ Brené Brown Suburban-Detroit readers: There’s still time to register for the November Self-Help Book Club discussion at Clawson’s Blair Memorial Library. I hope you’ll join me for a deep dive into the popular new guide, How to Be Enough: Seven Life-Changing Steps for Self-Critics, Overthinkers, and Perfectionists, by Dr. Ellen Hendriksen. Does the fear of failing get in the way of your goals? Do you often worry that your best effort isn’t good enough? Do you overvalue the opinions of others? Dr. Hendriksen is a practicing psychotherapist who conquered her own perfectionism and helped many clients overcome…
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Redefining “family”
“Family was a bigger word than I imagined, wide and without limitations, if you allowed it, defying easy definition. You had family that was supposed to be family and wasn’t, family that wasn’t family but was….It was possible to lack whole, honest love and connection from family in lead roles, yet to be filled to abundance by the unexpected supporting players.” ~Deb Colette, The Secret Life of Prince Charming The holiday season begins soon, shining a bright light on our family relationships. Sometimes that’s a beautiful thing, and sometimes it’s … complicated. (In another post, I’ve shared a column about coping with the loss of loved ones during the holidays.) Culturally…
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What are you expecting?
“There are two ways to be happy: improve your reality, or lower your expectations.” ~ Jodi Picoult Today’s quote really got me thinking. Over the past year, I’ve learned too many things that have deeply disappointed me. And while I’m usually an optimist, some of these things have made me doubt my faith in humanity and made me anxious about the future. You too? Part of the problem is that most of us are consuming more “news” than we can thoughtfully process and systematically fact-check. (Thanks, social media.) No wonder so many people fall under the dark spell of misinformation and conspiracy theories. So what does this have to do…
