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Thursday's Essay Preview

The first paragraph of Thursday's essay, "Perfectly Equipped,'" reads as follows:

T.S. Eliot wrote, “When a poet's mind is perfectly equipped for its work, it is constantly amalgamating disparate experiences."  That is precisely the point of this essay.  I could end the essay here, but it would be far too short to qualify for one of my essays.  
    

Thursday's Essay Excerpt - from the last paragraph of the essay

But it is not really an accident (chance) at all; it happens because I am prepared, and preparation in any field, discipline, domain, occupation, area, branch, or sphere is the key.  You don’t prepare because you know what the future holds, you prepare to lay the foundation for a productive and active life!

  


And Then Some News

And Then Some News

Thursday's Essay Preview

The first paragraph of Thursday's essay, "Forgiveness Forces You to Grow Beyond What You Were,'" reads as follows:

A young lady in my interpersonal communication class asked for my advice about trying to find out who her real father was.  She felt betrayed by him from childhood when she learned she was adopted, and she wanted to find out who could deceive, desert, and disappoint at such an intense and personal level.  I remember my advice to her as if it were yesterday.  

Thursday's Essay Excerpt - from the last paragraph of the essay

Bernard Meltzer said, “When you forgive, you in no way change the past, but you sure do change the future.”  While unforgiveness makes you smaller, forgiveness forces you to grow beyond what you were.      



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And Then Some News

Thursday's Essay Preview

The first paragraph of Thursday's essay, "Reflected Appraisals,'" reads as follows:

“I think that I have never seen a man as well-defined as he,” is an adaptation of a line written by the poet (Alfred) Joyce Kilmer, from his poem, “Trees” (1913), “I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree.”  With my adaptation of Kilmer’s line, I am referring to my 98-year-old father-in-law, Edgar E. Willis; however, I admit, that at 98 most people are well defined.
   

Thursday's Essay Excerpt - from the last paragraph of the essay

In all these cases, the reflected appraisals have taught me what I do not want to be and what I do not want to do.  Not to be totally negative, Edgar reads, watches sports, is aware, alert, and mentally active, and he has an incredible memory.  Even though most of what I have observed, as noted in this essay, are negative traits I want to avoid, they make me a stronger person by underscoring and firming-up the positive traits I have in place.  Reflected appraisals have the potential for making you a stronger person with more clearly defined characteristics.


And Then Some News

And Then Some News

Thursday's Essay Preview

The first paragraph of Thursday's essay, "I'm Unique,'" reads as follows:

One time it was a short article I read, another time it was a place I visited, and yet another time it was music I was listening to.  The inspiration for my essays comes from so many different directions, and, in many cases, I’m not always certain exactly what or from where it originated.  That’s the nature of my mind.  It’s as if I am saying, “So many ideas, so little time!”

    

Thursday's Essay Excerpt - from the last two paragraphs of the essay


Finally, she says, “go ahead and enjoy the thinking process.”
   
I love her last idea, of course.  As I said earlier in this essay, I am a thinker (and fortunately, too, a doer!).  And if this essay helps you de-construct your whole process of inspiration, perhaps, it has made a contribution.  Maybe you just need to stop and meta-observe (examine your inside activities by taking a position outside yourself!).  This, too, can be a delightful exercise — maybe even one that will prove how unique you are!


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