Responsibility

There were a few surprises at the Oscars last night. Personally, I love the underdog stories, like a few years ago when the low budget film Hurt Locker beat the zillion dollar extravaganza, Avatar, for Best Picture. Last year it was the low budget movie The Help that did so well and made stars of ... Continue Reading »

I just about died today. Nearly, honestly. This isn’t one of those over dramatized stories, this is all true. And it happened the day before the American elections. My last breath was almost taken on a treadmill at the local gym at 8:16am Monday morning. It was a typical workout, all going according to schedule. ... Continue Reading »

It was a Tuesday night in April, 1999. I was in a Sydney pub, talking about life and death issues with a local undertaker. The irony of the situation was not lost on us. It felt like the beginning of a joke. But what was about to happen was no joke. First we heard a ... Continue Reading »

When something like the Lance Armstrong cheating saga hits the news, we tend to become armchair judges rather than life learners. In this case, the lesson is about the shades of grey. Maybe we should keep wearing the rubber wrist bands that Lance made famous but change them from yellow to grey, as a reminder ... Continue Reading »

When it comes to change, there are three paths to take; waiting for life to happen TO you, making things happen, and turning around and wondering what happened. The first path lacks responsibility. The last path lacks intention. The middle path is the way to go. It is for sure the road less traveled, but ... Continue Reading »

The adventure of being alive is a DIY process. Change your life from the inside out.

How does your life fit into a wider purpose? Most of us are looking for the largest possible context to make our life feel purposeful. Live large. Think cosmically. Act globally. Live locally. I noticed a few years back that I started telling my life story in decades. I did this in the 80s, such ... Continue Reading »

There are many theories as to why the Titanic disaster happened. Some people blame the slow reaction, or lack of preparation, of the crew. Others blame the insufficient lifeboats for the number of people on board. The Onion, the satirical magazine, may have come closest to the mark. In a 1999 article this was the ... Continue Reading »

“I don’t want to be a mother” she announces quite decisively while standing in the doorway of the laundry room. Yes, she nods to 9 year old self, she seems quite certain. “Why” I ask, as I shove dirty undies, stinky socks and crusty jeans into the washing machine. “Because I don’t want to do ... Continue Reading »

I like to take any opportunity I can to snoop. I like to check you out, give you the once-over, peer inside your house and take in all I can see from where I stand. I assess, discern, listen to my gut and then create an opinion about you all within a few seconds. I ... Continue Reading »

Leo Buscaglia said, “Don’t waste a second asking, ‘Why isn’t the world a better place?’ The question to ask is ‘How can I make it better?’ To that there is always an answer. ” The answer depends on how much you care. It is your empathy which defines the amount of ownership and personal responsibility you ... Continue Reading »

Are you a lippy driver, specializing in drive-by insults and graphic hand gestures? “Forget world peace buddy- visualize using your turn signal. Hey, if you don’t like the way I drive, stay off the sidewalk…….. “ and similar pleasantries. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they drive. Maybe more to ... Continue Reading »

There was a movie a few years back called “What women want”. Mel Gibson was the lead, an ad man. He took a series of womens’ products home to test drive them and, in the process, accidentally electrocuted himself. When he woke up, he had the uncanny ability to hear womens’ thoughts. Don’t let the ... Continue Reading »

How far does responsibility stretch? Your own life and actions? Care for your immediate family? Your extended family? As a parent, you might imagine that your job is done when the kids leave home. But they keep coming back! And the family keeps getting larger. Now your family includes grandkids, and in-laws and their extended ... Continue Reading »

This is the third article in a series on responsibility. First I looked at the personal and relational issues around responsibility, where each individual owns their choices, responses and feelings. It’s summarized well by the Fritz Perls statement, I do my thing and you do your thing. I am not in this world to live ... Continue Reading »