You may be thinking, “I don’t know that I met anybody during COVID, except for the person giving the vaccine, because we were all locked down at home.” Then you may have had a chance to meet a really important person – the person you could meet on introspection – yourself. From the beginning of…
Details
“It has been about 15 years since I worked with a middle school student who loved football. He wasn’t doing well in school, which actually made him ineligible to play on a school sports team. You would think that this would have motivated him to focus more on his academics so that he would have…
DetailsIn 1774, future President John Adams penned the following: We see every day that our imaginations are so strong and our reason so weak, the charms of wealth and power are so enchanting, and the belief of future punishments so faint that men find ways to persuade themselves to believe any absurdity, to submit to…
Details
You may be thinking, “Playing what for?” So, allow me to ask the question a bit differently. Who are you living for? Now in this “enlightened” age, I might get a variety of answers – “I live for my kids or my grandkids;” “I live to hear the approval and applause from others;” or “I…
DetailsI recently had a discussion in my university Marriage and Family class regarding finances, which is often seen as a major source of marital conflict. The discussion centered around debt and financial priorities. It was interesting to hear what various students would go into debt for. The list ranged from houses and cars to televisions…
DetailsWhile great hope and promise accompanies most births, not every child is given the same set of advantages. Those differences may be in the area of the family’s financial situation, whether the child is born into a one or two parent household, the support (or lack thereof) of a strong extended family, and so on.…
Details
I recently found myself in a discussion with a client rearding the future. He is trying to make some plans regarding his health, travels, and long-term living arrangements. He also raised end of life issues. The conversation ran several different direct But I couldn’t help but notice the intensity with which he looked at all…
DetailsEarlier this week I had the privilege of being interviewed by a radio station in Ohio. As we discussed the challenges of marriage, we began to explore the details of relationships that have “gone cold.” These may be couples who have not given needed attention to their relationship, resulting in a staleness or complacency. On…
DetailsYou find yourself in one of those discussions again that just doesn’t feel good. A disagreement has arisen with your spouse and you are trying to work through it. But something is eating at you. You find yourself irritated and you are not sure why. You feel as though you are being condescended to; almost…
DetailsWe have all experienced those times when we have walked into the room and our spouse has “that look.” I have heard it called the “evil eye,” or the “stink eye”, but regardless of what you call it – we all know the look. We used to get it from our parents. We didn’t like…
Details