28Jul 2015 by CJ

Age is just a number – be grateful for the time you’ve been given

Generosity & Kindness, Life & Living
“Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul." Samuel Ullman It wasn’t until this year (when I turned 40) that I began to consider myself “old”. While I’m sure those in their 70’s and 80’s find great amusement in my admission, for me it’s been difficult to accept that four decades of my life are now behind me. Even writing that makes me cringe. Lately however, the subject of age has been continually on my mind – especially given the fact that my new co-worker is only 22-years-old. While I’ve been generally surprised at how well I’ve been able to interact with someone half my age, at times…
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27Jul 2015 by CJ

Finding the positive in every situation

Life & Living
“A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.” Herm Albright, quoted in Reader's Digest, June 1995 Though this probably won’t come as a surprise to anyone who knows me, I’m a fairly negative person. I have this uncanny ability to take the smallest of problems or issues and completely blow them out of proportion. I believe the more commonly used term would be “drama queen”. Label me if you must. But today I said to myself, “even if the situation is frustrating and aggravating, is it really all that impossible to pull a positive from it?” Case in point. Today my main sprinkler valve decided to burst – spewing water like a geyser on the side of my…
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20Jul 2015 by CJ

Prejudices should not be something you teach your children

Information & Education, Life & Living, Youth
"Racism isn't born, folks, it's taught. I have a two-year-old son. You know what he hates? Naps! End of list." Denis Leary The other day I was sitting in traffic, when a strange question sprung to mind: is it possible to fully love someone who supports societal and stereotypical prejudices? It was an odd question I admit, but there it was with no definitive answer on the horizon. Prejudice has often been defined as “a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience”. But I think Charles R. Swingoll summed it up best when he said, “Prejudice is a learned trait. You’re not born prejudiced; you’re taught it.” For some it’s those individuals whose socioeconomic conditions pale in comparison to our own. For others it’s a person’s…
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14Jul 2015 by CJ

Leadership’s about more than saying what’s popular

Life & Living, Youth
“It is not easy to stand up against your constituents or your friends or colleagues or your community and take a tough stand for something you believe is right. Because you always want to keep working and live to fight another battle and it might cost you your career.” Caroline Kennedy Today’s society has become more sensitive and defensive than ever before. A direct result of this is much of society has become fanatical in how “politically correct” we all are in what we say and how we behave out in the world. At times I can’t help but wonder if this new normal is causing us to suppress actual issues no one wants to bring up publically. This suppression of reality is a dangerous place to be, and further…
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19Jun 2015 by CJ

Jealousy only robs your life of valuable time

Life & Living, Youth
I credit Jennifer James (cultural anthropologist, celebrity and motivational speaker) with one of the best summations of what it’s like for those of us who’ve ever battled feelings of jealousy. “Jealousy is simply and clearly the fear that you do not have value. Jealousy scans for evidence to prove the point - that others will be preferred and rewarded more than you.” Her words are powerful – speaking to the inner root of a hard to control emotion so many of us experience. This overcomplicated and highly stereotypical society we now all live in has caused many to devalue the opinion they have of themselves. The media has identified what “is” and “is not” considered “acceptable” and thus we continually struggle to attain acceptance based on a set of criteria…
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