26Jul 2022 by CJ
Being a Winner is Not How Children Should Define Success

Being a Winner is Not How Children Should Define Success

Generosity & Kindness
Today's generation of children believes that being a winner - being #1 - is one of the most important personal characteristics they can strive towards.  Humility, unfortunately, is not a word they use or apply in their interactions with others. Instead, they've based their self-worth and perceived successes on overconfidence, which includes always being a winner, on never making a mistake that would topple them from the throne of being #1. Many children now lack the social-emotional skills to cope with losing - even among family or friends. And when they are, in fact, the legitimate winner of a game, contest, or other competitive circumstance, they take great satisfaction in making sure they flaunt their achievement to the losing party with an unappealing dose of arrogance.  To be valuable and…
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08May 2022 by CJ
Respect Your Fellow Human Being – A Lesson American’s Still Haven’t Learned

Respect Your Fellow Human Being – A Lesson American’s Still Haven’t Learned

Generosity & Kindness, Life & Living
American politician and former professional basketball player Bill Bradley once remarked, "Respect your fellow human being." I've been thinking a lot about those five little words lately - respect your fellow human being. I turned 47 this year - spending almost five decades living, learning, loving, losing, and hoping that with each passing year, I might find myself living in a world where compassion, empathy, respect, and equality become the moral compass by which all of society acts in accordance with. But I have to remind myself (continuously) that America's existence continues to be plagued with hate, division, and self-serving agendas evidently found in government, communities, and organizations across the country. What's perhaps most frustrating is that those in positions of power, the so-called leaders who are supposed to set…
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02Jan 2022 by CJ
The Happiest Man on Earth Teaches Us About Political Hatred

The Happiest Man on Earth Teaches Us About Political Hatred

Generosity & Kindness, Information & Education
I recently read a memoir by an author whose name is probably unfamiliar to you, as it was to me. The memoir's title is The Happiest Man on Earth, written by Eddie Jaku and published when he turned 100 years old. However, you won't conclude from the title of this book that Eddie Jaku was a survivor of the Holocaust. Before turning to the very first page, I found myself questioning the incredible contrast between the title and the realities so many of us have read about the Holocaust. How could Eddie have spent seven years experiencing unimaginable terrors and incredible loss and then recanting those tales in a book entitled The Happiest Man on Earth? The book is heartbreaking at times, painting a clear picture of the torture and suffering Eddie…
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07Dec 2021 by CJ
It’s about what you’ve given back that matters during the holiday season

It’s about what you’ve given back that matters during the holiday season

Generosity & Kindness
“At the end, it’s not about what you have or even what you’ve accomplished. It’s about who you’ve lifted up, who you’ve made better. It’s about what you’ve given back.” - Denzel Washington My wife and I decided to forgo exchanging presents with each other this Christmas. Now I realize for some of you reading this, the notion of not having a gift to open on Christmas morning is a desecration of the holiday itself. But what if, instead of lavishing each other with gifts we may or may not want or need, we did as Mr. Washington states – it’s about what you’ve given back. In our home, a lesson learned from the pandemic has been the realization that we are incredibly fortunate and unquestionably blessed. We’ve come to…
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03Aug 2021 by CJ
Mental struggles do not need to define who you are

Mental struggles do not need to define who you are

Generosity & Kindness
Did you ever look at another person closely and wonder what’s hiding behind their smile? Are they creating a fictitious persona whose purpose is simply to conceal their mental struggles? Does seeing that smile – the universal expression for joy, pleasure, excitement, satisfaction, and many others – cause you to perhaps inaccurately deduce that this person is void of life’s challenges and un-wanting of a kind word or a dose of unsolicited compassion? In a way, we’re all nothing more than actors in a play. Settings and circumstances vary from one scene to another, and therefore we must conform to specific roles we’re expected to portray either by society, co-workers, spouses, friends, or even ourselves. Frequently the motivation for such scenes is simple - smile, smile, smile! Never let the…
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