"Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece with a silver Cartier fountain pen on an antique writing table in an airy SoHo loft would seriously surprise me." --Hugh MacLeod

Abraham Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address on a piece of ordinary stationery that he borrowed from the friend whose house he was staying at.

Do something, anything, with what you have on hand right now.

getting ready for school

Only a few weeks left before school starts, and I am reminding myself:

Yes, math and reading are important. But what matters most is what kinds of human beings are reading the books and doing the math.

Instead of presenting barriers to shaping people of civic conscience, our schools should be the laboratories for acts of conscience. Let's inspire students to follow their conscience not in spite of what we teach and do in our schools, but because of what we teach and do.

Post-it Inspiration

My own marketing plan for inspiration.

Samaritan Experiment 2.0

I've added art work to my Samaritan Envelopes ... It's an attempt to encourage my own creativity. I'm calling it, Samaritan Experiment 2.0.

Bus Stop, Ketchum Idaho

Wrap City, Ketchum Idaho

Click HERE for more information on the Samaritan Experiment.

Abby

A lovely post that made me cry.

Minnesota Matron : Someone Else's Story

Sometimes the smallest acts are the biggest gifts.

Sunday Children's Book

Change Has Come

Post-it Inspiration

African American Studies

I am mulling over the arrest of Henry Louis Gates.

I didn't think I'd ever see Henry Louis Gates' mug shot, nor a photograph of him being led off his front porch in handcuffs. Those images, to me, are "An American Tragedy".

Harvard Professor Gates was arrested last Thursday in his home when police mistook him for a burglar (charges that were later dropped). The ugliness of this situation brings feelings of humiliation and shame.

The racial situation we inherited is still very ugly.

What can each of us do today to dedicate ourselves once again to the proposition that all men are created equal? Human being to human being, let's move forward.

make me

I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it.

-Franklin D. Roosevelt

I heard this quote earlier in the week and it has stayed with me. It feels so relevant to today. As citizens we must lead the way. Let us find that common stake we all have in one another. Let's demand that from our leaders. There's no limit to what we can and must achieve for tomorrow.

PM Gordon Brown

Fantastic! Gordon Brown at TED Global in Oxford.

Good Samaritan

I admire the Good Samaritan for picking up people on the side of the road, but I don't want to be the Good Samaritan. I want to fix the road to Jericho, so people don't get beat up there.

-Martin Luther King Jr.

Post-it Inspiration

Post-its left to their fate

the power of intention

It's time to put the power of intention to work.

Please say a prayer, light a candle, and hold in your thoughts the safe return of Pfc Bowe Bergdahl, an Idaho soldier who was captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Bergdahl is a 23 year old young man from Hailey, Idaho who needs our energy and support.

Sunday

A Mom's Tattoo Inspires a Book of Family Essays. Check out Jancee Dunn's interview on NPR.

Excerpt:

Last Thanksgiving, right about the time that our family had finished scraping up the last of our triple fleet of pies (pecan, chocolate, and pumpkin) my mother pushed away from the table, dabbed her lips with a napkin and calmly made an announcement.

"I'm gettin' a tattoo," she said.

All of us froze. Most even stopped chewing, a testament to the gravity of the situation.

Happy Birthday

When the going gets tough, the tough get meditating.

I've recently tried to reintroduce my meditation practice. I have a back-jack in my closet and occasionally disappear into the closet to practice the Buddhist tradition of approaching every moment with ... you know ... loving kindness.

Recently during one practice session, my son was searching the house for me. He does this by standing in one place and shouting "Mama... Mama..." From my place of peace I shouted back, "I'm in the closet!" A few moments later I could hear him enter the closet. "What... are you doing?" he asked. "Meditating." I answered. He sat next to me crossed legged, palms up. "Why?" he asked. "To clear my head; to find peace." I answered. He sat for a minute, then headed out of the closet. "Wow," he said as he left, "that really works!"

And on I practice...

Post-it Inspiration

Stuff

Watch The Story of Stuff. 

I bought a plastic 'salad spinner' yesterday that I am now looking at with great suspicion!

Post-it

I have been following the blog Things We Forget for a while now. It's a collection of Post-it notes left to their fate in Singapore.

I thought I would give it a try myself:

You Come Bearing Gifts

In every situation, in every encounter, you come with a gift. The sooner you figure out what it is and give it, the happier you are.

Try it.

What am I bringing to this room, this situation, this person?

Then give it.

Mysterious Letters

I love the blog  Mysterious Letters.

If you believe in humanity and our interwoven connections, you'll love it too!

re tweet

Recent tweets from my favorite mayor, Cory Booker:

"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." -- Gandhi

"Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words." -- Francis of Assisi

"Before you tell me about your religion, let me witness it through your treatment of others. Before you talk of God, show me your love of humankind." -- Cory Booker

You Matter

From Seth Godin's Blog:

You matter

• When you love the work you do and the people you do it with, you matter.
• When you are so gracious and generous and aware that you think of other people before yourself, you matter.
• When you leave the world a better place than you found it, you matter.
• When you continue to raise the bar on what you do and how you do it, you matter.
• When you teach and forgive and teach more before you rush to judge and demean, you matter.
• When you touch the people in your life through your actions (and your words), you matter.
• When kids grow up wanting to be you, you matter.
• When you see the world as it is, but insist on making it more like it could be, you matter.
• When you inspire a Nobel prize winner or a slum dweller, you matter.
• When the room brightens when you walk in, you matter.
• And when the legacy you leave behind lasts for hours, days or a lifetime, you matter.

Social Investing

"In the course of history, there comes a time when humanity is called to shift to a new level of consciousness, to reach a higher moral ground. A time when we have to shed our fear and give hope to each other. That time is now." -Wangari Maathai

Remarks by the President at The New Economic School graduation in Gostinny Dvor Moscow, Russia, July 7th

"...You get to decide what comes next. You get to choose where change will take us, because the future does not belong to those who gather armies on a field of battle or bury missiles in the ground; the future belongs to young people with an education and the imagination to create. That is the source of power in this century. And given all that has happened in your two decades on Earth, just imagine what you can create in the years to come.

Every country charts its own course. Russia has cut its way through time like a mighty river through a canyon, leaving an indelible mark on human history as it goes. As you move this story forward, look to the future that can be built if we refuse to be burdened by the old obstacles and old suspicions; look to the future that can be built if we partner on behalf of the aspirations we hold in common. Together, we can build a world where people are protected, prosperity is enlarged, and our power truly serves progress. And it is all in your hands. Good luck to all of you. Thank you very much." -- President Barack Obama

I Can Teach You...

What can you teach me?

Name tags... only much cooler!

What are you here to teach?

Intention

Recently, I met Dr. Gary Schwartz, Professor of Psychology, Surgery, Medicine, Neurology, and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona. He had mentioned a book called The Intention Experiment by Lynne McTaggart.  On my Amazon account under "selected for you" was the book title The Intention Experiment.    Hmmmm. Today, I turned on XM Radio and heard Lynne McTaggart describing her work with 'intention'. Well, I don't need to be hit over the head, so I've begun looking into The Intention Experiment by Lynne McTaggart!

What's your intention behind the decisions you make? Get clear about why you do what you do.

My intention is to promote the greater good and to inspire others to do so as well.

Something tells me I need to be clear about that.

The Youngest Candidate

"The Youngest Candidate" is a feature length documentary film that follows the campaigns of 4 teens that ran for public office in America.

Funny, inspiring, poignant, and ultimately uplifting, 'The Youngest Candidate" is a story of idealism, leadership, and family. Because in the end, it's all about how you play the game that matters.

stay

Last night we stayed up late and enjoyed the beautiful fireworks and the full moon.

While putting my son to bed he asked me, "How old will I be when you die?"

I said, "Oh, you'll be a grown-up. It's a long, long time from now. I plan to stay here as long as I can."

He thought for a while... "Can you stay with me until I fall asleep tonight?"

So I stayed. And I think about the countless people who are... not here. Millions of people who are no longer with us. People who were once doing just this: holding a sleeping child and watching the moon.

I am grateful that it is my turn...  for this little while.

Happy 4th

Listen to the reading of the Declaration of Independence on NPR.

Have a wonderful 4th of July!

lost tribes

Urban anthropologists Carolyn and Andy London animated street objects of New York using voices of New Yorkers they had interviewed.

It is absolutely wonderful!

The Blue Sweater

I read a fantastic book while I was away, "The Blue Sweater" by Jacqueline Novogratz.

Read the inspiring Prologue and learn more about Jacqueline Novogratz and the Acumen Fund  at  www.the bluesweater.com.

Read this book and you'll understand the power of connection, the necessity of interaction and the power you have, right now, to change the world.

No Turning Back

I was gone for a week. Back Now.