Relationships

Love Changes Everything

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“Love, love changes everything … Nothing in the world will ever be the same.” ~ from Andrew Lloyd Weber’s “Aspects of Love”

The black jeep drives out of the Denny’s parking lot in Gallup, New Mexico, my daughter Guinevere waving from the back seat. It turns south on Muñoz Drive, then west on I-40 on its way back to Sedona, Arizona.

For ten minutes, I sit numbly in my car, unable to turn the key in the ignition and follow Muñoz to I-40’s eastbound ramp, for the two-and-a-half-hour trip home to Albuquerque. When I do, it’s a long time before I can turn on the radio or call a friend, the two distractions that often ease long drives for me.

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Building Positive Friendships: Modern Tools and Old-Fashioned Self-Understanding

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“How can someone you’ve never met possibly be considered a friend?” This challenge was posed to an old friend of mine, one who has “been there” for me in person in years past and now stays in touch via the internet. But can it actually work the other way round? Can we make “real friends” through technology, meeting them in person only later, if at all? Are the friends we make through non-traditional means actually “real friends”?

Modern technology has changed almost every aspect of life, and so it’s no small thing to consider: What exactly is a friend? What types of friends do I want? Who are my real friends? The answers deserve careful thought and reflection. No two people are going to come up with exactly the same definitions, filters and requirements. Whether we consciously know it or not, we all have a set of rules and definitions for friendship.

These rules are so much a part of us that we may get knocked for a loop when our “friends” do things that violate our rules—which may or may not be *their* rules. So how do you sort out it all out? In building a positive life, friendship can be one of the best parts of our world. It’s worth taking the time to understand our own minds and hearts. The best place to start is by taking the time to get to know what the terms “friend” and “friendship” mean to each of us.

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The Joy of Positive Gift Giving

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One of the most challenging aspects of our relationships is gift-giving. Not just for holidays, but all year we’re faced with the prospect of choosing gifts for friends, loved ones or even someone that we might not have met.

All too often the need to come up with a gift can be a source of negative feelings. Despite all obstacles in our paths, we can strive to find gifts which will delight and help, as well as satisfy our social and personal obligations, by bringing a positive perspective into the act of gift-giving.

Right now, we have the additional challenges of a tightened economy. Many are unemployed or coping with decreased incomes. Even in the best of times, choosing gifts that speak positively can be a daunting hurdle. Gift-giving founded on positive principles may take a few extra steps past the quick answers found at the mall, but it’s easier than you might suspect.

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The Danger of Virtually Living

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Virtually living. How many of us here are doing just that, I wonder. I’m going to share something a little personal with you today in my musings. But there is a point to it …

The other day, I was “on the road” for my job – the first time in several years that I was doing so. It’s something I love, and was excitedly looking forward to getting back to talk to “my people”. Oddest thing was, each time I sat down with someone, I found myself awkwardly groping for contact … and anyone who knows me, knows that has never been a problem. I felt very much “in a fog”. Why? What happened? What changed between then and now?

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Resurrecting Family Rituals

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Nothing provides a sense of place and a feeling of fulfillment quite like participating in family traditions or rituals. These can be something you do together for special holidays, or weekly observances used to maintain your close family ties.

Participating in special family rituals can evoke various feelings, set different moods, and elicit past memories. If you choose those traditions or habits that make you and your family feel good, you can bring about feelings of happiness and joy.

Unfortunately, the demands of juggling work and home make it easy to forget about family traditions that have been passed down from one generation to the next. These things also make it difficult to consider beginning new rituals that your children can pass along to their heirs.

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How to Sharpen Your Networking Skills

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Last week I was on a 4 day training course in Downtown Vancouver, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to sharpen my networking skills. I am normally fairly quiet and introverted, so I often need to make an effort when it comes to networking and the like. That said, I have come a long way since my days of being painfully shy.

The following are some of the most important networking lessons I have picked up in recent years, plus a description of how I applied them last week. If networking is one of your weaknesses, I strongly recommend you try some of these suggestions.

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What Is Love?

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Ahhh yes… love is in the air. Valentines Day – that day you either eagerly await, dread, or are just plain indifferent to – has rolled around again. Personally, I think it is nice to have a day where you do a little bit extra to show your partner how much you love and appreciate them (assuming, of course, that you have a partner).

So what is love? Many a great mind (and probably a few poor ones too) have contemplated this question. I doubt there is any other topic more written about, whether in the form of a story, a poem or a song. So for today’s article I went in search of some of the best quotes on the subject.

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The Moments That Define Us

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If you value your sleep, don’t have kids. I’m just kidding, of course (see my article 6 Lessons From My 6 Month Old for just some of the reasons why children are a blessing). I am, however, writing this after another night of interrupted sleep. Our little boy is teething at the moment so a decent sleep is but a distant memory.

We love our little boy dearly, and this love comes easily during the day when he is happy and cute. During the night, however, our patience can get seriously tested when he is crying and all we want to do is sleep. Anyway, this got me thinking. It is easy to love a baby when they are happy and cute, but when they really need to be loved is during the difficult times when they have been crying for hours non-stop. After all, they are the ones in real pain (especially if they are teething). In my opinion, these are the moments that matter, and therefore how we act during these moments define what type of parents we are.

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