The Garden of Plenty

Have you ever agreed to do something for a particular price - and then immediately regretted it?  I have, and I know I’m not alone! 

Just today, I had two conversations with self-employed clients and friends who were in a bit of regret about “underpricing” themselves.  Wanting to make their customers happy, they had made themselves unhappy.  They had traded their services for cash, and had given themselves the short straw of the trade.

Whether you own a business, work a job, or or invest in various relationships, organizations or causes, you are constantly “trading” your energy for something else of value.  Maybe you trade your time for dollars with clients or an employer; maybe you’ve traded your career for the chance to be a stay-at-home parent.  

No matter the situation, it can be hard to ask for what we want in the trade.  And sometimes, we betray ourselves by asking for less than we know we’re worth. Continue Reading »

I’ve heard it said before that we are Spiritual Beings having a Human Experience.  I’m not sure who originated that saying, but it’s one that I think many of us can identify with.

I believe that as spiritual beings, we share many characteristics of the Source or the Spirit from which we come.  As Wayne Dyer would say, a slice of pie is likely to be the same kind of pie as the pie it came from! You wouldn’t have a piece of apple pie that was cut from a whole cherry pie.  (A simple yet profound metaphor to ponder….) Continue Reading »

In this time of reflection, let us remember

What our forefathers have discovered

What our ancestors have taught us

What our soldiers have sacrificed

(and what those sacrifices might have to tell us about the importance of peace.)

(MLK Memorial Flag Poster by artist Edie B. Eisenberg)

Let us learn from history, not mindlessly repeat it. Continue Reading »

I spoke with a friend tonight who is in the process of filing for bankruptcy.  She has lost her livlihood, her credit, her car, even her own place to live.

After two failed business ventures followed by a health challenge that left her briefly incapacitated, she finds herself now with mountains of debt and no real income.  Falling on the mercy of family and friends who have fed and sheltered her the last few months, she has retreated to an earlier profession, wrangling a few hundred dollars a month from friends and aquaintances who can afford to hire her on occasion. 

She has lost what most people would consider “everything.”

As I spoke to my friend, I noticed a palpable shift in her since we last spoke a number of weeks ago.  Was it depression?  Resignation?  Anger, shame, or blame? Continue Reading »