Sixty-One

It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who we are. We face surprises. And disappointments. The crucial fact is that we are different from anybody we know and admire…. It takes all one’s courage to be the person one is, fulfilling one’s odd and unique possibilities.

By M.C. Richards
Source: Opening Our Moral Eye

And the world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles,
no matter how long,
but only by a spiritual journey,
a journey of one inch,
very arduous and humbling and joyful,
by which we arrive at the ground at our feet,
and learn to be at home.

By Wendell Berry

Source: The Collected Poems of Wendell Berry, 1957-1982

Learn again how to play. One in touch with the vitality of the inner child throws himself into life. He is free to move spontaneously from intuition. His actions are neither dependent on the validation of others nor blocked by his own self-censure. No longer a mere observer or spectator, he actively participates in his life. This childlike spirit of engagement is the road to life’s work. As Thomas Merton said, “A man knows he has found his vocation when he stops thinking about how to live and begins to live.”

By Laurence Boldt
Source: How to Find the Work You Love

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fact that I share this date with the Prez. What is odd, though, is that my wife shares her birthday with the last Democrat president. What are the odds?

Okay, enough. Time to go back to work tomorrow.