Struggling with finding peace in the midst of Christmas chaos It’s almost Christmas, and it’s snowing. I have a fire going with last night’s leftover wood, fresh coffee in my cup, and Annie Lennox is on the stereo, warbling on about nightingales, shepherds, and snowflakes. There are four grandchildren in…
The Job Of Being A Professional Storyteller
Telling stories for fun and profit in the cutthroat world of serious business The title on my business card reads, “Raconteur.” It’s a somewhat archaic term that simply means storyteller, but it’s a hell of a lot better than consultant. The word itself has a rapscallion air to it, as if describing someone…
Why’re You Drinkin’ Like The Night Is Young
Why’re you drinkin’ like the night is youngWhy’re you drinkin’ like the night is youngThe kids are in the bed and the day is long doneSo why’re you drinkin’ like the night is young— Holly Williams Searching for a new perspective for enjoying the experience of dining without booze There is a…
Christmas Means Comfort
A meditation on the food that means home to me, and my ongoing battle with one pesky rooster It finally feels like the Christmas season to me. I still have work to do before the end of the year, but it’s going to be winding down soon, and I’ll have more time…
The Rewilding Of Christmas
In my efforts to reignite joy in the holiday season, I discover the magical promise of Grandie’s Eve.
The Preacher, The Poker Player, And Poppy
These journal entries were written around two decades ago, over the course of several years. My journal from a Texas hunting camp When I close my eyes, I no longer have visions of deer picking their way through the trees, and the voices in my head have completely stopped, but every…
The Lost Art of Listening
Maintaining quiet confidence in the face of uncertainty My wife Jane is the type of person who likes to ask a lot of questions during a movie. She has never quite accepted the idea that the filmmakers are only interested in revealing the amount of information they want to reveal, at…
We Can Be Heroes
How tragedy plus time equals comedy “I wish you could swim, like the dolphins, like dolphins can swim. Though nothing, nothing will keep us together. We can beat them, forever and ever. We can be heroes, just for one day.” — David Bowie Tragedy plus time equals comedy. You could probably amend it to…
Is Your Imagination Robbing You Of Real Experiences?
A vivid imagination can let you explore life in ways otherwise impossible, but is it keeping you from experiencing the real thing? The Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman said that he never allowed himself to dream of winning the Nobel, because as a child, growing up during World War II,…
All That Remains
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.” ―Robert Frost When it’s all over, who and what will live on Sometimes, I think of hope as the palliative we use to keep from getting lost or going insane, and not much more. It may…