Craig Ruvere

20Mar 2024 by CJ

Preparing Food is an Effort that Shows How Much You Care

Generosity & Kindness, Love & Relationships

“I think preparing food and feeding people brings nourishment not only to our bodies but to our spirits. Feeding people is a way of loving them, in the same way that feeding ourselves is a way of honoring our own createdness and fragility.” Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way The year was 1999, and a friend of mine from college had just introduced me to a remarkable young woman who, a few short years later, would surprisingly become my wife. At this point in history, my future wife and I were nothing more than acquaintances who associated with each other only in groups of mutual friends, not solely on our own. One weekend, while my parents were out of town, I decided this was an…

12Mar 2024 by CJ

Growing Old Makes Us Appreciate the Simplicity of Life More

Love & Relationships

"Growing old is a privilege, but growing old with you is a blessing beyond measure." – Unknown. Whenever I can, I like to visit my local Costco warehouse store as soon as it opens, especially if I only have to purchase a few smaller items. With only fresh spinach on my list one morning, I was eager to be in and out of the store as quickly as possible to avoid those shoppers who filled their carts to excess and would soon be clogging up the self-checkout lines. While making a beeline toward the refrigerated, fresh vegetable area, dashing down aisles to avoid the inevitable congestion at the free sample carts (and that guy who always tries to sell me solar panels), I passed by an elderly couple, who, by…

05Mar 2024 by CJ

Stereotypes Prevent Us from Getting to Know Others

Life & Living, Youth

"The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story." Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Once upon a time, in a land called New Jersey, lived a young boy (that would be me) who struggled to fit in and find acceptance with other young boys his age. I was kind, sensitive, amusing, and highly creative, with a never-ending imagination that always surprised and amazed everyone around me. Such traits were not befitting of the societal stereotypes adopted and supported when it came to the male gender and their behaviors. But such traits were only one part of my story. I also enjoyed digging in the dirt behind my parent's garage with a miniature…

27Feb 2024 by CJ

Rudeness Is a Sign of Weakness, NOT Strength

Generosity & Kindness

“Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.” - Eric Hoffer Many years ago, a co-worker shared her work philosophy that, at the time, seemed rather self-centered. "Don't make your problems my problems." As someone who tries to be a good listener, personally and professionally, her statement seemed unfeeling and a clear admission that she did not possess the emotional capacity (nor the interest) to be burdened by someone else's issues. Fast forward some 20 years, and while my relationship with that co-worker has since ceased, I am still reminded of her philosophy from time to time, though admittedly, my understanding of it has changed. While I initially perceived her statement to be self-centered, lately, I find myself acknowledging how those who are unhappy with their lives will treat others…

06Dec 2023 by CJ

Christmas Memories Bring the Holidays to Life

Life & Living, Love & Relationships

"That's what Christmas memories are made from, they're not planned, they're not scheduled, nobody puts them in their blackberry, they just happen." – Deck the Halls (Movie, 2006) My grandmother lived on the first floor of a modest two-family home. The rooms were not large, the décor was somewhat dated, and storage was always an issue, especially for a woman notorious for saving everything. Her first-floor apartment always felt warm, safe, and welcoming for a little boy who spent countless hours in his grandmother's company. Widowed in her early 50s, I became a loyal companion for my grandmother, filling in some of the silence with endless chatter, constant questions, and hearty laughter, which seemed to lessen our loneliness for very different reasons. Hers, due to the loss of my grandfather and me,…