Living in the suburbs can do strange things to a person. But stranger still, are the things a person will do to escape living in the suburbs. But first, let’s consider the following John Muir pondering:
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe."
Imagination is under-valued. We are in this race to acquire knowledge, learn skills and gain experience. Yet, we forget to include the very thing that brings value to knowledge, skills and experience – imagination. What makes anyone great at what they do is when they take general knowledge or skills and approach them in a new way. They apply it differently like rearranging elements in an equation or painting with a new brush stroke technique.
In the background is playing Moonlight Serenade by The Glenn Miller Orchestra. The aroma of garlic and onions sautéing fills the kitchen and dining room. Then there are a few delightful squeals from my 10-month-old daughter as she happily watches me crush herbs with my mortar and pestle. I only hope that one day she might be doing the same – enjoying an evening cooking with her daughter.
Life is about discovering new places, people and ideas. It is these discoveries and experiences that make life worth living and molds us into who we are. Although there is no doubt you will discover a great many new things when you travel to a new country, but what about those excursions that are just waiting to happen right around the corner? Do we really need to travel half way around the world to discover and live a full life? Well, I say no. And here are six "just-around-the-corner" excursions you do not want to miss out on.
I had this vision of writing a blog where I weighed in on the dairy debate: raw vs. pasteurized, skim vs. whole, and so forth. But as I reflected on the debate, I realized it was really a symptom of a much bigger problem.
When I talk to people about their health, they usually think of only their physical health. However, our overall health, or well-being, includes our mental and emotional health, too. In fact, our mental and emotional health play a role in our physical health and vice versa. They are tied together like everything else within us and around us. I find, to stay healthy and to avoid common illnesses and injuries, it is necessary to take pro-active steps to de-compress from the go-go-go of today's society. This includes unplugging from all of the electronics, and consequently the Internet.