Change
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I Want You to Want Me
All you need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt. Charles M. Schultz Want (verb): To wish, crave, demand, or desire. Need (verb): To require. The way I read the newspaper hasn’t changed in a very long time. I begin with a quick glance at the front page before turning to… Continue reading
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Amen
The Amen of nature is always a flower. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. On Saturday, January 24, I did something I haven’t done since I was a kid. As most Americans should know, that was the day that Alex Pretti was brutally beaten and murdered by ICE agents. The Twin Cities were still grieving for Renee… Continue reading
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On Death and Loss
The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of those depths. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross After a break for the holidays, I am back to my Coming of Age journey. So much has happened since the pause. Most importantly, ICE… Continue reading
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Where Do We Go From Here?
Some of them knew pleasure. Some of them knew pain. And for some of them, it was only the moment that mattered. Jackson Browne Minnesota is in the news again. Nearly six years ago it was for the murder of George Floyd. This past June, a crazed gunman shot and killed state representative Melissa Hortman,… Continue reading
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Unraveling the Knots
People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring. Roger Hornsby A couple weeks ago, I wrote of learning how to ice skate after decades of unrequited love. It was a feel good story about overcoming hesitations… Continue reading
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A 42-Year Ride
I left the ending ambiguous, because that is the way life is. Bernardo Bertolucci One of my last good friends at Avaya was laid off last week. Although he and I only worked on the same project team for the last four years of my employed life, we share a history of jobs, customers, conventions,… Continue reading
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On the Nature of a Higher Power
There is an eternal landscape, a geography of the soul; we search for its outlines all our lives. Josephine Hart This missive is part of my Coming of Age series of articles. If you haven’t been following along and would like to know what this is all about, you can find the previous articles here:… Continue reading
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First Frost
All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost. J. R. R. Tolkien We had our first frost of the season on Saturday. Having lived in Minnesota since the 1980s, I know that no… Continue reading
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On Being Human
We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin I began an on-again, off-again relationship with Unitarianism sometime in the late 1990s. Admittedly, I was introduced to the religion by my wife who grew up Unitarian. I was raised a Catholic, but somewhere… Continue reading
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One Step, Two Step, Change Step
People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar. Thich Nhat Hanh Preamble: Although much of this article is based on Twelve-Step concepts, everything is applicable to non-recovery. Change is a universal human need no matter where you are coming from… Continue reading
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Lost in These Autumn Breezes
Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night. Hal Borland Minnesotans like to joke that if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. While that isn’t exactly true, I have seen it go from summer to fall practically overnight.… Continue reading
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Living the Dream
A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality. Yoko Ono Excluding some slight poetic license, the following is a true story. My head must have been a thousand miles away when I was startled out of my thoughts with a loud, “We’re livin’ the dream, Andrew. Livin’… Continue reading
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Accept Forgive Heal
Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity. Hippocrates Every Wednesday, I gather with a group of similarly aged men to catch up on our lives and talk about whatever it is that crosses our minds. While we sometimes drift into politics and how messed up the world… Continue reading
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Get Off My Lawn
I’ll know my song well before I start singing. Bob Dylan I like to say that I catch nostalgia like a cold. It grabs hold of me and clouds my senses with illusions and fantasies. Play Me and You and a Dog Named Boo and I’m 13-years-old driving in the car with Dad up to… Continue reading
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Reframing Aging
My position has always been that the way people age and the signs that we show of aging is nature’s way of tattooing. It’s natural scarification, and the life you lead gives you the symbols and the emblems of your life, the road map you followed. Frances McDormand As I wrote about in my article… Continue reading
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Somebody Somewhere
If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading. Lao Tzu I have always been a stumbler. I create lofty plans regarding where I want to be and what I need to do to get there only to see my journey become a series of accidents, pitfalls, switchbacks, and wrong… Continue reading
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Entirely Ready
I have to be composed; I have to be poised. I have to remember what my first piano teacher told me: ‘You do not touch that piano until you are ready and until they are ready to listen to you. Nina Simone It has been a few months since I wrote A Fearless and Moral… Continue reading
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Visualizing Success
Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other. Abraham Lincoln I was recently in a conversation with a friend who spoke of his struggles at work. He questioned his effectiveness and whether or not he was making a positive difference with his clients and coworkers. After listening… Continue reading
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The Joy of Just Enough
Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough. Emily Dickenson It used to be that if you asked me what I wanted I would have said “everything.” It didn’t matter if I earned the right to make such a statement. I wanted what I wanted and I expected everyone to understand… Continue reading
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Emotional Tattoos
In Hinduism, Shiva is a deity who represents transformation. Through destruction and restoration, Shiva reminds us that endings are beginnings, and that our world is constantly undergoing a cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Karen Salmansohn Not too long ago I heard an interview with the director of the 2013 movie The Place Beyond the… Continue reading
Can You Hear Me Now 