Think About It

Today is one of my favorite days of the year – it is Opening Day for Major League Baseball.  I know that we have been playing practice games for the past several weeks, (and the Yankees and Giants got a head start yesterday); but for many of the rest of us, starting today, it’s for keeps.  I realize that the absolute best day is the day your team clinches the World Series title, but let’s be honest … for most of us, this is what we have been looking forward to since early last autumn.  As I think about Opening Day, the word hope comes to mind.  We are all filled with hope that our team will do well – that our pitchers will pitch and our sluggers will slug.  We have hope that this will be the year we will turn it around or that it will be the next year of a growing dynasty.  We hope that someone will have a dominant Hall of Fame caliber season and that others will be in contention for Rookie of the Year.  Yes, hope springs eternal – at least for the nex...

When I was a child, I learned there were a few things you didn’t discuss with people – especially those you didn’t know.  You didn’t ask someone how old they were, nor did you ask them about any sort of malady or sickness they had.  Politics were often off limits, and the discussion of religion was often viewed as taboo.  Honestly, sometimes I wonder if we shouldn’t adhere to those rules in the 21 st Century; but I want to focus on one in particular – discussing religion.  Now, you might find it odd that I would dissuade the discussion of religion – I mean, isn’t that my business?  While that is true, I believe any religious discussion should come with a caveat – it needs to be done with the best of intentions.  There are plenty of good reasons to discuss spiritual concepts; but there are also some that aren’t noble.  If we set out to prove someone wrong or to try to trip them up in what they believe, I think we have taken the goodwill out of the disc...

As I drove around the other day singing along with Gary Stewart, I realized something – I like Honky-Tonk music.   I kind of hate to admit it, but there is something about those twangy old tunes that strike a chord with me.   Now, the reason I am a bit hesitant to mention this is that the topics of these songs aren’t always positive.   I am a card-carrying teetotaler, but a lot of the music that has made a mint for beer joints and millionaires out of country singers is also found on my playlists.   Thankfully, my taste in music hasn’t influenced me to the point that I have embraced the drinking and cheating lifestyle. As I reflected on this, it served as a reminder that we need to constantly be checking on the things we allow to influence us.   No, the music by George Strait and George Jones isn’t (necessarily) going to drive me to take up residence in a dance hall any more than rap music will make criminals out of all of its listeners  or heavy metal wil...

Is there a season of life that find particularly stressful?   Maybe that answer depends upon where you are in your life.   If you are just starting out, wondering how we are going to find a house or raise the children or stick with a profession can create anxiety.   As we age, facing retirement, health issues and a lessening sense of community involvement can create stress.   If we allow it, life – at any stage – can have an emotional impact.   Now, while stress and anxiety can be an issue, it doesn’t have to be debilitating.   For some of you, this discussion is moot because you have found an emotional equilibrium that eases the burden; but for others of us – even staunch believers – stress can present problems. There are all kinds of theories about how to ease stress – from meditation to medication – but I think that one thing that can make a world of difference is a believe that inner peace is possible.   It may not be simple, and it may not give ...

          Depending on where you live, you might already be enjoying the improving weather of spring – or you might still be bracing for the next blast of winter-like cold; but no matter what the reality is, the calendar tells us that today is the first day of spring.   While there are some things I don’t like about spring (like mud and pollen), there are many other things I enjoy.   Not only do we get to enjoy the new growth of plant life, but we also get to experience a new birthing season for many species of critters.   Whether it’s the calves in the fields, the spotted fawns in the woods or the baby bunnies buried in their nests in the backyard, spring is a time when we start to see a new season.             While the animal world seems to follow nature’s calendar, as humans we aren’t confined to start over only one time of the year.   When it comes to making changes in our lives, w...

What can you do with your life?  What will you do with your life?  These two questions may sound similar, but their answers can lead us in very different directions.  Potential is all about what is possible.  It establishes the outer boundaries of our influence.  While it may not be limitless, it covers a pretty big expanse.  Productivity is typically much narrower; and, therefore, more limiting – not because we can’t do more, but because we don’t do more.  Have you ever thought about how much potential you have?  I think this is a scary thought for many of us because it forces us to wander into the unexplored darkness of the unknown.  We like the safety of knowing what we can do because we’ve already done it; but is that as far as we should go?  Potential calls on us to try to expand the borders (even if we fail).  In fact, in kind of an odd way, failure is a necessary part of potential because it defines our outer limits.  In...