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Celebrating October
“October is the month of painted leaves.Their rich glow now flashes round the world.As fruits and leaves and the day itselfacquire a bright tint just before they fall,so the year near its setting.October is its sunset sky;November the later twilight.” ~Henry David Thoreau, Autumnal Tints You don’t have to look hard to find poems, essays, or quotations that celebrate the beauty of October. I copied today’s quote in my journal after reading Thoreau’s Autumnal Tints during my first fall semester in college in 1972. Today, it’s still my favorite quote for the month. October is the soul of autumn, inspiring moments of reflection as well as fall color tours and…
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Truth looks good on you
“Be impeccable with your word. Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.” ~Don Miguel Ruiz Rumors and gossip and misinformation, oh my. Even though we know better, we might be tempted to share private information that we shouldn’t share. And even though we know better, we might spread misinformation without questioning the sources or researching the facts. Before you speak to someone or post anything on social media, it helps to question your own motives. What will you gain by spreading gossip or…
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Crossing the not-so-great divide
“Being nice to people you agree with can be a piece of cake, but if we’re only spending time around buddies who share our beliefs, we aren’t learning how to extend kindness and understanding to those who we don’t see eye to eye with. Practicing empathy across divides requires occasionally and willingly crossing those divides.” ~Rebekah Brandes, Nice News Last week I talked with another friend who’s on the verge of cutting ties with folks who don’t support her favored presidential candidate. If “the other candidate” wins, well, that’s the end of those relationships, she implied. Sadly, it’s not an uncommon conversation, given that we’re in the heat of the…
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Point of view
“If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view — until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” ~Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird Folks who lack empathy view everything solely from their own perspective, putting their own needs and desires first. They hear only what they want to hear. They don’t seem to care if their actions are hurtful or offensive. They believe their personal opinions and biases are the universal truth — and can’t understand why others are often at…
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Creative cycles
“For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks. Its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.” ~Cynthia Occelli Nature often reminds us that growth and creativity are preceded by change or “complete destruction.” This is especially true in the fall. Here in the Midwest, some of our trees are just starting to drop their leaves and seeds, and soon will stage a brilliant color show before shedding completely. With that in mind, I’ve found that the best way through a creative block — or any sort of problem — is to…
