In mid-November, Salvation Army’s iconic red kettles and their bell-ringing attendants pop up around the Twin Cities and other metropolitan areas. One of those bellringers is Jack. He has rung bells for the past ten years. “It’s a lot of fun,” Jack said, “It’s a way to get outside of myself. I like doing it …
The Phoenix · In Gratitude “The root of joy is gratefulness…It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.” ― Brother David Steindl-Rast I enter this season of gratitude—starting with the Thanksgiving holiday followed by our various spiritual celebrations of hope—with much for which to be grateful. I recognize a cornucopia …
Volunteering is like a happiness pill. At least that’s true for Ruth, a recovering addict who lives at Knollwood Place, an apartment building for older adults in St. Louis Park. Ruth likes going to what she calls her “happy place” — helping others living in the building with recreational outings, special lunches, and other activities. …
“Be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” Plato I have started tracking kindness – noticing her as she gently touches the ordinary of my day. I see her at the bus stop as the first grade big sister greets the eager-to-have-her-home little brother. I see kindness in the neighbor who mows two …
Potatoes; a pocket watch chain; a pair of decorative combs; a plastic crucifix. Are any of these on your gift list? We may turn up our collective nose and scoff at the quaintness, yet each in its own way could stand in for the grander definition of “gift”. The 14th century Persian Sufi master and …
“You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” ~ Kahlil Gibran It is better to give than receive. We hear it all the time—especially this time of year. But sometimes I wonder if we really believe it. We say the phrase as …
