I love puns. They are simultaneously funny, corny, and clever. Two years after George Lucas launched Star Wars: A New Hope, the original film in the Star Wars franchise, a pun was born that has morphed into a global holiday. The origin story began on May 4, 1979, when a celebratory ad was placed in … Read more
Did you know that bamboo is actually stronger than steel? This is because of something called tensile strength. Tensility is defined as the resistance to breaking or splitting under tension. In the case of these two materials, bamboo is actually stronger than steel because it has a more tightly packed molecular structure. Bamboo has tensile … Read more
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Soaringwords (@soaringwords) I adore mosaic artwork. The dazzling array of colors, the shimmering surface of tiny smashed, fragments of tiles artfully arranged to create a beautiful design. When the New York City subway stations were renovated, I was thrilled when the West 86th Street … Read more
Nature is a wonderful teacher, with so many abundant lessons to absorb. According to the ancient Jewish text The Talmud, “Every blade of grass has its angel that bends over it and whispers GROW, GROW.” When spending time in nature, you get to observe so much miraculous life sprouting up all around you. It takes … Read more
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Soaringwords (@soaringwords) It’s valuable to learn how to distinguish between the foreground and the background of situations. The poet Henry David Thoreau said, “The question is not what you look at, but what you see.” Each day, we are given hundreds of choices on … Read more
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Soaringwords (@soaringwords) Here’s some food for thought based on scientific findings: Stop bending yourself into a human pretzel! Sometimes, when you constantly try to people-please, you end up contorting yourself into a pretzel. If this has ever happened to you, then maybe you know … Read more
Are you showing up for a conversation or a confrontation? These words from my dear friend Greg stopped me in my tracks. Civility is the ability to recognize divergent viewpoints without entirely discounting the person who holds a different view from yourself. Well, today civility is clearly in short supply. When having a disagreement or … Read more
When my younger brother died suddenly from an asthma-induced heart attack, I got the call at 4 a.m. in the morning—setting off a trifecta of trauma in my family. Five weeks later, my father had his second bout with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and, 10 months later, my son became catastrophically ill with rheumatic fever. Thankfully, both … Read more
Living next door to Central Park for 37 years, I have discovered that I feel different on days when I walk through the park. Even taking an 18-minute walk instead of pounding the pavement has a significantly different impact on my mood and my energy level. As a Positive Psychology practitioner and thought leader who … Read more
Everyone is familiar with Nike’s iconic global theme line “JUST DO IT!” It’s one of the most recognized and celebrated catch-phrases of all time, written by advertising legend Dan Weiden who recently went to that running track in the great beyond. Chances are, when you hear the “JUST DO IT” call to action, you experience … Read more