Craig Ruvere

22Feb 2022 by CJ

Checking Your Work Says a Lot About Who You Are

In fourth grade, my English teacher Mrs. Dempsey was a stickler for proper grammar. Not a surprise given the fact that by the time she was my teacher, she had already welcomed 30 years of students into her classroom. While yes, she taught me a great deal about grammar and punctuation, her greatest lesson was always checking your work before turning it in. I’m sure I wasn’t the only student who was taught this invaluable lesson by one of the many outstanding teachers throughout the United States (and globally, for that matter). But lately, I’m beginning to wonder if the practice and benefits of checking your work are now unimportant to today’s youth and, sadly, today’s workers. Time and time again, I continue to see adults with high-paying salaries and…

26Jan 2022 by CJ

Mental Health Struggles Do Not Discriminate in Today’s Society

Life & Living

Many of us believe that the subject of one’s mental health is only attributed to those individuals who’ve received a clinical diagnosis from a licensed professional. But the truth is that mental health issues do not discriminate, and struggles are often easily identifiable in so many of us today. According to MentalHealth.gov, “Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices.” Over the last few years, we’ve all struggled on some level with how we think, feel, and act – not to mention how we’ve managed stress. A global pandemic has infiltrated the normalcy we all take for granted while pitting neighbor against neighbor in what has become…

10Jan 2022 by CJ

A Lack of Sacrifice, Compassion, is How We Got to Where We Are

Information & Education

In Mitch Albom's book The Five People You Meet in Heaven, he writes, "Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to." A lack of sacrifice can undoubtedly be attributed to the increasing divide in our country when it comes to the pandemic, especially vaccines. Throughout history, our government has imposed rules and mandates in an attempt to make our lives safer, better, longer. A few that come to mind are wearing seatbelts while driving on public roadways, having to endure security checkpoints at airports, banning smoking in public places (even outdoors), and I'm sure you can think of many, many others. At times, all these rules and mandates were met with great public resistance – viewed as inconveniences infringing…

02Jan 2022 by CJ

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…

07Dec 2021 by CJ

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…