Thought of
the week.

Lately, I have been reflecting on the concept of loving others even when we can’t love ourselves–or alternatively, the inability to love others until we love ourselves. When I started my journey in recovery, if someone would have told me that one day I would really love myself, I would…

Is there a benefit to engaging in negative self-talk or negative self-judgement? I have said many times that if anyone were to talk to us the way we talk to ourselves, we’d most likely beat them up and then never speak to them again. This same thing applies with some…

“Sometimes the worst mistakes we make are when we project our feelings onto others” – Rabbi Jonathan Sacks Lately, I have been contemplating the breakdown in society and how radically separated we have all become, and I wonder what I can do to bring us closer together. How can I…

What is the difference between hope and optimism? I view optimism as believing in the positive outcome no matter what, which at least for me, is almost impossible to maintain all of the time. Hope, on the other hand, is the belief that together we can make it better, that…

I was reading an article by Rabbi Jonathan Sachs regarding the difference between power and influence recently; I was profoundly impacted by what I read, and would like to share the thought with you in my own words. Power is a ‘zero sum’ concept, in that if I give some…

Goethe warned that although, “hatred is active, and envy passive dislike; there is but one step from envy to hate”. Aeschylus said, “it is in the character of very few men to honor without envy a friend who has prospered”. I just read both of these quotes in an article…

How do I stand up for what is right, or for what I believe in, when I risk alienating others—or for that matter, when I risk being ostracized, judged, ridiculed, or cut off? The hardest thing for me is to maintain my integrity to my own values when it differs…

Tragedies and challenges seem to be hitting us in every direction. I have heard countless people asking, “How come so many people are suffering– why are so many tragedies happening?” Death by Covid, death by stampede, mental illness, addiction, abuse, and unfortunately, the list goes on and on and on.…

How do you have difficult conversations? How do you respond when someone has a differing opinion from yours? To take it a step further, how do you respond when the differing opinion can be interpreted as something that is harmful to you? Lastly, when you hear that someone has maligned…

Recently, I was walking with a friend of mine, and we were having a conversation about my relationship with God, my faith, and my trust in God’s will for me. I was saying to him, that to enhance my relationship with myself, my fellows, and my higher power, I pick…