When you’re the older brother, growing up with an unspeakably pretty kid sister is a recipe for stress. You invest in karate lessons and basic firearms training. You start early with the Prozac.
With a twelve-year age gap between us, I had already moved out of the house when I received the inevitable call from my parents, explaining, “…We all knew this day had to come. Lauren’s brought home the first one. We’d like you to come around and meet him, but a word of warning: He’s surly, has a bad attitude, and his hygiene is…questionable!”
This, of course, was Lauren’s very first hamster. Read More→
Have you ever been stuck in an airplane circling around your destination until it’s safe to land? An announcement comes on that says it’s necessary to be in a holding pattern due to fog or air traffic. At first, you are okay with it, knowing that an experienced pilot is in charge. But after a while you become annoyed being stuck in the air. You start worrying about what could happen, and then you wonder when your plane will finally land safely.
Has someone ever thrown you a golden nugget of advice that flew right over your head? It happened to me, but you can’t blame me, I didn’t HEAR them. Those golden nuggets are always competing with white noise. White noise is the distraction that keeps us from focusing on those important goals that fulfill our lives. 
I saw the Hunger Games recently and to my surprise it was great! I was struck by the themes and how many of them really applied to everyday life. No, I don’t plan on ruining the movie for you, so if you haven’t seen it your still safe.
In life, there are good surprises-moments that fill us with wonder and lift our spirits. But there are also terrible surprises, those that break us into pieces for a spell and take our breath away. Sometimes things go awry.