29Jun 2013 by CJ

Is your comfort zone keeping you from a meaningful life?

Life & Living
What were your hopes and dreams when you were age 10, 20, 30? Chances are they’ve changed greatly from one decade to the next. After all, as we grow and mature into new stages of our lives, our desires for the future are altered by previous experiences and the realities we face along the way. I’m reminded of a quote from the cartoon strip Calvin and Hobbes: “Day by day, nothing seems to change, but pretty soon...everything's different.” And that’s where I find myself today – everything is different. My hopes and dreams from age 10, 20, 30 and now almost 40 have evolved over time, and much of what I thought I wanted for the future is no longer true. I suspect this is from many of the unforeseen…
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26Jun 2013 by CJ

Learning something from the “roads” we travel

Life & Living
Whenever I discover a new song that inspires me, I always want to share it with all my friends unknown. The song is called Roads and it’s sung beautifully by talented artist Chris Mann. Here’s a brief snapshot of the lyrics: There are roads In this life that we all travel There are scars and there are battles where we roam When we are lost Or wherever we may go They will always lead you home There are roads That have lead me to another To a friend or to a lover I have known For every turn Is a year that I have grown As I walk along these roads “For every turn, is a year that I have grown.” There’s no denying that life is filled with challenges…
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25Jun 2013 by CJ

We can endure much more than we think

Life & Living
We can endure much more than we think we can; all human experience testifies to that. All we need to do is learn not to be afraid of pain. Grit your teeth and let it hurt. Don't deny it, don't be overwhelmed by it. It will not last forever. One day, the pain will be gone and you will still be there. Harold Kushner, When All You've Ever Wanted Isn't Enough It’s been a week since my grandmother’s passing, and honestly I just don’t feel like myself ever since. The finality of her time here on earth is something that continues to weigh on my mind, and tug heavily on my heart. I try to go about my day as though it doesn’t bother me – pushing it to the…
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25Jun 2013 by CJ

What you say reflects the person you are

Generosity & Kindness, Life & Living
Teenagers from every generation tend to have their own unique “slang” growing up – leaving adults in bewilderment as they struggle to figure out what they’re trying to say. But I’ve noticed something interesting about the current generation of young people, and even adults trying to recapture their youth by staying on the cusp of popular trends. The world of text messaging has created a new language of abbreviations across the digital superhighway - BFF and OMG being some of the more popular ones. But now there are thousands more – even websites dedicated to deciphering this new language for those of us who were once stumped by the abbreviation TTYL (talk to you later). But it’s a little frightening when people start to use these abbreviations in more than…
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24Jun 2013 by CJ

There’s nothing wrong with asking for help

Life & Living
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” Fred Rogers Years ago I was the kind of person who’s pride and insecurities prevented me from asking for help from others – emotionally, physically or environmentally. Maintaining this kind of unhealthy behavior allowed me to continually and regularly throw “pity parties” for myself, saying things like, “nobody has any idea what I’m going through.” What I’ve come to realize over the last few years, and through this blog, is that our problems are not isolated – that people all over the world are plagued with many of the same issues we are, and are probably saying the…
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