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The joys of reading
“The best moments in reading are when you come across something – a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things – which you had thought special and particular to you. Now here it is, set down by someone else, a person you have never met, someone even who is long dead. And it is as if a hand has come out and taken yours.” ~Alan Bennett, The History Boys I’m a lucky reader with an active book club in my own neighborhood. Once a month, I get to walk down the street or around the corner to a friend’s home to discuss a novel or memoir that I might…
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What is success?
“Success isn’t about how your life looks to others; it’s about how it feels to you.” ~Michelle Obama What does it mean to be successful? In our culture, we often define success in terms of money, power, or outstanding achievement. And if we spend time on social media, we might compare ourselves to others and wonder if we fall short. We might begin to doubt the success we’ve already earned. Even if we’re relatively happy or content, we wonder if we’ve achieved “enough.” Today’s quote reminds us that true success is measured individually, by our own standards. Your idea of a successful life might look different from someone else’s. Maybe…
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“I’m truly sorry”
“Sorry doesn’t take things back, but it pushes things forward. It bridges the gap. Sorry is a sacrament. It’s an offering. A gift.” ~Craig Silvey Mistakes were made. Columnist and speech writer William Safire once described the phrase as “a passive-evasive way of acknowledging an error while distancing the speaker from responsibility for it.” In other words, “Mistakes were made” isn’t a real apology. As today’s quote reminds us, a real apology is an offering. An apology shows that you accept your responsibility for a mistake, which elevates you in the eyes of the person you’ve hurt. On the other hand, making excuses for your errors — or trying to…
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Who really said that?
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” – Henry Thomas Buckle (1821 – 1862), English historian Not unlike gossip, many of the popular quotations we can easily pull from the Internet are misattributed or taken out of context. It’s worth doing some research to determine the origin and authenticity of the material. The more we spread misinformation, the harder it is to pinpoint the truth, the real source. Just like gossip. Today’s quote is often attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt. But apparently scholars can’t find anything close to it in any of Roosevelt’s writings or speeches. According to an in-depth piece in the Quote Investigator, the…
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Bad manners and social graces
“Sometimes, to have good manners means putting up with other people’s bad manners.” ~H. Jackson Brown, Jr. Etiquette expert Emily Post advised that having good manners isn’t just a matter of using the right fork or refraining from passing gas in public. Courtesy, she said, is all about being “sensitive to the feelings of others” and putting them at ease. Civility is another word for kindness in action. Lately we’ve all noticed an increase in rude, insensitive behavior — on the road, in restaurants, in politics, in grocery stores. If we’re not mindful, boorish behavior will become our cultural norm (if it isn’t already). Bad manners will erode our peace…
