This is my son, Hunter, sitting on a boulder in the middle of a river, in my sister’s backyard in Costa Rica. I remember seeing him that day, thinking he looked sad, lonely, and bored. I had all but convinced myself that we should have waited to take our trip when his cousins were on vacation, so he’d have someone to play with.

I basically scolded myself and felt badly that, in my rush to get down there, I’d completely neglected his needs, and planned a trip that wasn’t going well for him at all.

Bad mommy.

Selfish mommy.

I could’ve done better.

Posted in Life, choices, happiness, inner peace, serenity, simplicity 86 Comments »

Recently I was thinking about how difficult it can be when we feel we need to hide our authentic self from others. We know deep down that the person everyone else sees is NOT who we are. We want them to see us, and love us, for who we truly are; but we dare not risk revealing the truth for fear of being rejected… of losing everything we love.

It suddenly dawned on me that my dear friend, Jamie, has lived most of his life this way, because he is gay in the Bible Belt. Being gay anywhere can be challenging; but being gay in ultra-conservative, intolerant towns can be downright dangerous.

Posted in Letters From Readers, Life, acceptance, inner peace 66 Comments »

Exactly a year ago, I published my very first post, How Many Souls On Board?

One of the early posts that really set the tone for my approach to life and my message to the world was, Choosing to See the Good. I became convinced that every life, every place, every job, every situation has positive and negative aspects, and that finding happiness depends on being able to choose the aspects we focus on.

I then started a Spirit of Adventure series on Monday mornings, to try to encourage readers to cultivate excitement in their lives, at any level. Great adventures, simple excursions, and a child-like view of the world can do wonders to spice up an otherwise dismal existence.

Posted in balance, helping others, inner peace 103 Comments »