Turning Strangers into Friends.
In the 5 years before Darren and I got married, I made only a couple trips a year out of my home state. Mostly to visit family. Mostly with my sisters. Which meant I had a lot of chances on those trips to talk with a lot of people I know really, really well. In […]
“You’re not the boss of me!”
“You’re not the boss of me!” Darren loves to use this phrase (facetiously) whenever I remind him of something or tell him about something that (I think) might make his life a tiny bit easier. Me – “Your water is on the nightstand by the bed.” Him – “You’re not the boss of me!” […]
2000 hours and my Universal Truths.
I have had the incredible opportunity for two thousand hours now to sit across the screen from people who want to make progress in some area of their life. One definition of progress I love is “forward or onward movement toward a destination, to improve, to proceed, to advance, to make headway, to press on, […]
The Strengths of our Ancestors.
Last fall my sweet Mom and I had a conversation about family history. (Stick with me.) I did not necessarily get the genealogy bug, but I will admit that my ancestors have been on my mind much more often since my Dad passed away almost 5 years ago. I have a Mom and Dad […]
Point Positive and an ancient prophet.
Illustration: Sketchplanations My brother in law Chad is a large, quiet, fearless (really!) man who spent a decade of his adult life as a professional white water river guide. Besides my sweet mom, he is, in my (very, very large) family, for sure one of the most trusted and trustworthy members. The majority of us, […]
“which is fine…”
One of the things I hear most consistently from clients is a phrase so many of us use all the time. It’s the phrase … “which is fine…..” Saying it seems innocuous enough, and I bet most of us think we even mean it. Let me give you some (anonymous but not made […]
Hide and Seek – and a teeny tiny piece of halibut.
Growing up in our 70s suburb of Minneapolis meant big yards and no fences. Add into that summer nights when it didn’t get dark early, none of today’s tv streaming options, a new-ish neighborhood full of kids and you get the perfect conditions for hide and seek. I, of course, was a little too […]
Dina – and 5 reasons to say Yes.
Many years ago I was asked if I wanted to have a counseling intern “help me out” in my high school classroom. I remember clearly that I was reluctant, to put it mildly. Kind of bratty about it, if I’m being honest. I was picturing some young college student who wouldn’t know how to interact […]
Can we sing Stairway to Heaven?
My friend Melissa is a choral conductor and because of that, she is uniquely attuned to communicating intentions. She uses things like tempo, tone, phrasing, and volume to help her choirs understand the pieces they are performing and to convey that emotional understanding to their audiences. It is her vision that is interpreted. Communicating emotional […]
Those printing brothers from York, England.
Once upon a time there were 5 Gibson brothers from York, England: Robert, Stephen, George, Samuel, and John. According to Great American Press, they settled in the United States in 1850. Printing had been the family business, so they “brought with them a French handpress to jump start their new lives and business opportunities in […]
