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“Begin anywhere.”
In track and field, there’s a clearly defined “start” or line that tells runners where to begin the race. They can’t just begin anywhere. But in life, you can. Whatever life changes you want to make, this quote, by music composer John Cage, is a simple one to remember when…
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“Never fear shadows. They simply mean there’s a light shining nearby.”
Shadows tend to have an ominous connotation, especially in film where they might indicate that something frightful is about to appear on screen. But in order to produce the ominous shadow, there must be light not only present but nearby. This quote, by Ruth E. Renkel, reminds us of the…
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Living Life Poetically: The Beauty of Self
The ability to be yourself is one of the most important and underrated things you can do in life. It helps to keep in mind that there’s only one of you. So going through your whole life as someone else would be such a waste of who you are. But…
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“A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.”
A ship that’s always anchored to a harbor will have a lower chance of getting shipwrecked. But leaving it there means it will never fulfill its purpose–the reason for which it was built. While having a ship that never goes out to sea makes no sense, we’re sometimes like that…
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Living Life Poetically: Dream Catchers
“Dream Catchers” is a poem inspired by a conversation I had with someone close to me. They had good intentions. But my goodness, talking to them was such a buzzkill. I felt like I had to defend every decision I was making toward my personal goals and objectives, and every…
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“The person who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The person who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever seen before.”
In a marathon, the runners typically stop running at the finish line. We don’t see anyone of them deciding to run an extra mile because the finish line is simply where the race ends. This saying about following the crowd, likely by Francis Phillip Wernig (aka Alan Ashley-Pitt), is similar…
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“Being deeply loved gives you strength, while loving deeply gives you courage.”
During challenging times, we may need to lean on loving family and friends for support. Their support gives us strength; and something as simple as a hug or a listening ear can go a long way. So, the idea that being deeply loved gives us strength makes complete sense. However,…
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“Growth is painful. Change is painful. But nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong.”
What a shame it would be if a caterpillar decided to remain in its cocoon. Fortunately, nature runs its course and a metamorphosis occurs. The caterpillar eventually emerges as a butterfly–having no choice in the matter. We too are faced with the prospect of major change. But we typically do…
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“You have to set goals that are almost out of reach. If you set a goal that is attainable without much work or thought, you are stuck with something below your true talent and potential.”
This quote is by former baseball player Steve Garvey. The quote isn’t just about reaching for the stars and having ambitious goals. Instead, it’s about the consequence of not having ambitious goals. Therefore, the key message here is being stuck. Without setting goals that are almost out of reach, we…
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“If you’re doing something outside of dominant culture, there’s not an easy place for you. You will have to do it yourself.”
Whether we want to believe it or not, things like our age, gender, race, and socioeconomic background play a factor in where we go to school, when, if we attend college, what we major in, the career we pursue, when we start a family. The list goes on. Simply put,…