Only when you see someone else washing the dishes in a strange way do you notice that there is more than one way of doing things. When my mom came over to our place and watched a friend of mine washing the dishes, she almost fainted.
Read How do You Wash the Dishes? »
From the first year of my Special Education studies, I had this debate with Gal. Gal, who has a degree in Biology and Computer Science, thought that people’s behavior was all genetic and I, as an educator, believed it was all taught and could be changed. For years, we had those discussions. Over time, I learned there are many things that are mostly hereditary and Gal learned that even they can be changed with education.
Read Happiness is in Your Hands »
It is days before your 13th birthday and you are approaching the line. 12 sleeps from now, you will enter the scary age of being a teenager. For years, you have been a kid, a child. You have liked most of it and thought there would be magic when you celebrated your first teen birthday.
Read Welcome to Teenhood »
In many marriages, one partner is the main “bread winner”, spending his time (or her time, but mostly his) outside the home, being busy with work-related stuff some of the time at home and needing support from the “other” partner (typically the woman). This creates an imbalance in the family.
Read The "Other" Parent »
At a junction of life, in a world full of possibilities, Adam stood in the middle, struggling with making choices. He looked North and asked himself, “If I go this way, will I get what I want or not?”
For a while, he kept asking this question, but did nothing. The unknown was scary and he chose not to choose. Instead, he followed the herd, allowing the river of life carry him into the same stream in which everyone drifts and he lost his sense of identity.
One morning, Adam got up and found he had built his house in the middle of a junction. He was locked inside his own house and it did not feel right. His choice muscle was weak and, as the days went by, it was harder for him to move. He looked out the window, saw others going into their paths of life and felt stuck.
At that scary moment, Understanding he was a prisoner in his own house, Adam knew he had to regain control, focus and inspire himself to start a journey. He knew he had to change his point of view on life – it was a live show and not a dress rehearsal. He needed courage to play, to leave the junction and to take his first steps on the journey of life.
With his heart beating fast, Adam opened the door of his house. He felt the strong light stopping him at the entrance, yet he picked up his bag and bravely stepped out of his house, closing the door behind him.
He looked in his bag, wondering if the contents of this bag would last the journey. “Will the content of my bag help me find the way? Will it help me fight dangers? Will it help me scare the darkness away? Will I find companions to walk with me?”
Read The Journey of Life »
These days, when children’s eating habits have led to an increase in obesity, parents’ responsibility to raise food-smart children has increased too.
It is the quality or the nutrition in the food we give our kids, coupled with the teaching of good habits, that will determine our kids’ health as children and later as grownups.
Read How to Raise Food-Smart Kids »
For many years, I have been writing about the quest for happiness and, as you may now, I believe that focusing on good is the best way to make it expand. However, there are (many) people who find negative examples more effective, so I am going to try some humor (taking a cue from my kids, who flattered me this month when I bought a funny birthday card and said I was developing my sense of humor) and talk a little bit about the dark side of life.
Read The Art of Misery »
The 19th of October (my birthday, how exciting) has been declared “Global Hugs Day”. Free huggers will be going out to streets around the world from 11am to 1pm local time, offering free hugs to all and spreading human warmth.
Read Global Free Hugs Day »
It is amazing to discover that more and more often, decisions we make are no longer long-term or life-long decision but very short-term ones.
My parents come from a generation in which they thought that when a decision was made, it was made for life. If we misbehaved, they thought we would misbehave our entire lives. When we did not want to learn (OK, when I did not want to learn), they thought we would hate learning forever. When we hung around certain friends, they were afraid we would be with those friends forever.
Not so for my kids.
Read Decision Horizon »
One of most difficult things for teens to do is ask for help. Most of the time, the emotional struggles they face at that age prevent them from treating the adults in their life as resources.
Read Resourceless Teens »
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