Tag: Family + Relationships

Take nothing for granted

“I remember times when you and I were walking and, without prompting, you reached out and took my hand, your little fingers sliding into mine. I would like to tell you how that felt, but it is too big for words.” An excerpt from ‘Finding Chicka” by Mitch Albom Time passes in the blink of an eye. Take...

Stop keeping score

To increase our happiness, we need better questions than “What accomplishments should be on my scorecard?” Let me suggest a few that will lead to answers that can deliver authentic well-being. 1. Who has the intrinsic characteristics that I admire and want to emulate? 2. What do people most need from...

It's you I like

“It’s you I like, It’s not the things you wear, It’s not the way you do your hair But it’s you I like The way you are right now, The way down deep inside you Not the things that hide you, Not your toys They’re just beside you. But it’s you I like Every part of you. Your skin, your eyes, your feelings...

Live Free, a poem

Sometimes I’m goodSometimes I’m badI’m not only husbandI’m not only dad Sometimes I’m wrongSometimes I’m rightSometimes I’m peaceSometimes I fight Sometimes I’m falseSometimes I’m trueYou let me be meI let you be you We share in this giftOf our various facesWe are who we areIn all various places We give...

A Christmas toast to family

There’s an old pearl of wisdom that says the reason we have family is so that we learn to spend time with people with whom we would otherwise never spend time with. And while that’s sometimes true, I think it’s also true to say that because of family our lives are deeper, richer, more meaningful—or...

A Christmas blessing

Love is our greatest treasure. May we celebrate. May we share. May we never tire of doing what is good. And let us always be thankful for the time we have together.

Beautiful is being loved—and loving in return

My wife sent me this article today: A Picture My Son Took Changed My Ideas About Body Image It’s absolutely lovely and powerful. A powerful line: “I want (my kids) to think that beautiful is being loved — and loving in return.”

Be the one

“There are no words to express the abyss between isolation and having one ally.” – G.K. Chesterton

The depths of relationship are up to the people involved

I saw a conversation online about technology causing depersonalization in society. I jotted down some thoughts. “The best time to come pay me a visit is by telephone.” – my grandpa, probably “A phone call is just a way to avoid the intimacy that you only find on the wagon train together.”...

The circle of life

“By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he’s wrong.” – Charles Wadsworth

Grown-up love

“I love watching my kids grow up. But I hate it that they’re growing up.” – Frank Barnett

Mischievous growth

“Being a father now, I know what it’s like to see your children do something mischievous, but also appreciating what they’re doing because they’re experimenting and trying to learn.” – Cameron Moll

ROI and being a dad

“I once attended a seminar on time management where the speaker advised trimming obligations down to those that were high-priority, high-yield. After the seminar, I told the speaker he had just described the juggling act of parenting. Rid your agenda of low-priority, low-yield tasks that suck up your...

Assembly required

Recently, I spent an afternoon assembling a playground toy for my sons. Piece by piece. Hesitation after hesitation. I bumbled through the process as it slowly transformed from a disorganized mess into a completed masterpiece. My four year old stood by throughout the entire process. Impatiently, he wondered...

I was wrong vs I'm sorry

Admitting fault is a conduit to reconciliation. “I was wrong” is far more disarming than “I am sorry” when apologizing. I break this little rule more often than I care to admit. And it certainly isn’t because I am always right. It is because I want to win. The problem...