Today’s Brilliance from Jake Zeldin
I may only be 13 years old and to some, that may not be lot of years to absorb experience and wisdom. Yet I have endured more than some people have experienced in their lifetime. What matters most in this world is to make a difference and to inspire others. I suffer from a speech disability which renders me unable to communicate like everyone else. I have a hard time getting my words out quickly and most people judge me as a person as soon as I open my mouth to speak. I have fallen victim to bullying by peers,…
Harvesting Happiness: Lasting Happiness
By Lisa Cypers Kamen. Although money, relationships, jobs, or status do not necessarily result in true and lasting happiness, you can find other ideas and practices that will lead to greater, long-lasting happiness. Happy people hold a very important key to their internal state of joy. Happy people take time for themselves. Happy people do the things that they want to be doing. Happy people surround themselves with other happy people. Happy people find a way to see the beauty in life. Happy people are happy because they make happy choices for themselves. They don’t let outside forces control their…
Missing
By B. Lynn Goodwin. "Jay's run away," his mom told me over the phone. It was 2 a.m. and I didn't know what to say. I know that running away is something many 12-year-olds do, but Jay is not an average 12-year-old. He and his younger brother both have autism. At 12 he’s energetic and determined. He’s also as vulnerable and stubborn as a five-year old, and I imagined the same questions were running through his mom’s head and mine: What if he can’t articulate his name or his phone number? What if he walks up to a homeless encampment…
Top 10 Daily Mantras to Get You Going
Every day should be a positive one, no matter what it may bring you. One way to focus on the positive is to start each day with a mantra to bring in a positive outlook and exclude the negative. Some people like to have one personal mantra they say every day, while others like to switch it up, always staying on the bright side. Here are some daily mantras to keep you in bright, positive spirits. Choose one to be your own, modify them to suit you, or alternate between your favorites. I am thankful for what I have, even…
Today’s Brilliance from Madison Lewandowski
When I was in first grade, I broke my wrist. When the day finally came for me to get my cast taken off, I wasn't excited like most kids would be. I was petrified. The doctor came in with a huge tool that looked like a medieval torture device and started cutting my cast off, making a loud irritating sound. After that came the worst part. They had to take the cotton off of my wrist. It was very slightly stuck to the hairs on my skin because the cotton had been on my arm for the past six weeks.…
Harvesting Happiness: Never Give Up
By Lisa Cypers Kamen. If you want to find a story of courage, then you should definitely read Chasing Miracles by John F. Crowley. In it, he talks about his family's tumultous journey with their children, two of which have a form of Muscular Dystrophy known as Pompe disease. These beautiful children, Megan and Patrick, are an inspiration. The book is divided into three parts: strength, hope, and joy. Chapter two is what helped me come up with the title of this blog, because the family’s motto is “Never, never, never quit.” Their story focuses on determination, faith, hope, love,…
Deepening Love
By B. Lynn Goodwin. Why can't I get organized, I ask myself. Why do I keep spinning my wheels as I journal? I remembered the words of Temescal Writers leader Joan Marie Wood, who said, "If you keep writing about the same thing over and over, it means you have more to say." Could I be having issues again about whether or not my stories are mine to share? As a general rule, if it’s my story I have a right to share it, knowing it’s my emotional memory and no one else’s. Besides, that’s a concern to address down…
Today’s Brilliance from Alanna Jai Wall
Whether you are young or old you CAN make a difference! Everyone is different, we all have different strengths, weaknesses and talents, and we just all need to be our true self! When I first started Polished Girlz two years ago, I thought that I was doing something that was very simple, that anyone can do this. But I quickly learned that this simple act of kindness is so much more than just polishing the nails of girls who have special needs or who are in the hospital. It was actually making them happy and made them feel good about…
Harvesting Happiness: Overcoming Disappointment
By Lisa Cypers Kamen. How can you overcome disappointment? Here are a few simple things that you can try: Get rid of the evidence. Even the greatest thinkers and influential people faced rejection and disappointment. For example, Walt Disney was fired from his first job and look what he did later in life! Einstein failed some of his early classes, and was told by teachers he wasn’t intelligent because he daydreamed too much. In fact, he was daydreaming about the theories he would later change the world with—but the naysayers in his life couldn’t see that! Stay in the mud.…
Your Gift to the World
By Thomas McGreevy. Someone very close to me started a business recently and it gave me the opportunity to witness a significant shift in her posture, a shift that I think we all could use. This person has always been a hard worker and never shied away from responsibility, but I don’t think she found much satisfaction in her work before she started the business. I noticed how she would spend the small spaces of free time she had looking for ways to make her life better or more enjoyable. This often took the form of browsing around in search…
Today’s Brilliance from Erik McShirley
There are lots of sad, depressed, and/or angry people out there, but who says you have to be one of them? Easier said than done, you say? I've said that line a thousand times myself. But it's been proven that you are healthier if you have a good attitude. So why not do something relatively small, compared to things like marriage, or going to the moon, if it helps your health? (I mean that changing your attitude is small and good.) Try using humor to lift your spirit. If you want, try a joke book, or a comic book (the…
Harvesting Happiness: I Want… I Wish
By Lisa Cypers Kamen. I want, I wish, only if... are some of the phrases we use to describe an ambiguous point in our future when we will have what we think we need to be happy. In the present moment, we are left feeling unfulfilled. We are living with a sense of longing for a brighter future. We are hoping to change our current situation so that we can finally, finally be happy. And what are the things we need to be happy? A relationship? A new home? A new car? A new job? New toys? There are many,…
Jill’s Inspirational Weight Loss
By Kathi Casey. Today, when I was pondering my daily gratitudes, I began thinking about synchronistic events and how they arrive in our lives at just the right moment. Have you ever noticed that now and again someone comes along who truly inspires everyone around them and brings renewed enthusiasm into all of our lives? A friend of mine has done exactly that recently and I want to share her story with you. Feel free to share it with anyone else who may need a little bit of inspiration as well. Jill had been obese and diabetic for her entire…