I walked into Trader Joe’s feeling a bit down. As I approached a checkout counter with my cart full of groceries, I asked the checker how her day was going. She smiled and answered, “Every day’s a gift.” Then she asked how I was doing. I said I was “hanging in there.” She responded with,…
Go for it while You Still Have the Chance Ross Reck, “It’s not uncommon to hear people making excuses about why they didn’t take advantage of the opportunities that life sent their way. You’ll hear them say things like, “I could have done this or that….” Then come the excuses: “…but at the time my…
Listening to Someone Else’s Troubles can take away Yours The other day I went to the Post Office to mail a gift to my mother in law. I was not doing well that morning as I felt very stressed and anxious. When I was called to the counter, I noticed the postal employee who was…
Love: The Ingredient that makes all the Difference Recently, I was watching an episode of Globe Trekker on Public Television. The host of the show was passing through a city in Mississippi where he met a woman who was heralded as being an outstanding cook of Southern food. When he asked her what her secret…
Kindness Creates More Kindness A friend of mine was on a return flight from Zurich, Switzerland riding in the coach section of the plane. He was sitting in an aisle seat and the middle seat beside him was empty. As the flight attendant positioned herself for the safety briefing she attempted to put her props…
An Example of Perseverance Paying Off Not long ago, Toledo Mud Hen’s baseball player Mike Hessman set a minor league record by hitting his 434th minor league homerun–it was a grand slam. The record had stood for 80 years! This was his 20th year of professional baseball and nearly all of it has been spent…
Excellent Advice on how to Live Life to the Fullest A relative of mine recently posted the following advice on Facebook. I found it too good not to share. She said, “Go ahead and eat the chocolate cake. Walk in the rain and splash in the puddles. Ride with the windows down. Dance. Sing. Talk…
A 74 Year-Old Coach Sets Retirement Aside to Make a Difference Elliot Uzelac had coached college football for 40 years with stops at places like Michigan, Ohio State, Colorado and Maryland. During 2006-2010, he revived the football program at St. Joseph High School in Michigan by posting a record of 45-13 during his five years…
What do You Say to Someone Who is Grieving? Many of us have a hard time of figuring out what to say when we run into a friend or acquaintance who has recently lost a loved one. A friend of mine lost his wife to suicide a few months ago. At the urging of an…
Never Discount the Impact that Your Life has on Others Jen is a friend of mine who works in the meat department of a supermarket I frequent. Not long ago, as I approached her I noticed that her eyes were red and she had been crying. When I asked if everything was alright, she said…