I’ve been writing about happiness recently. This is the third (and final) installment in a series of pieces on this subject. The first installment can be found here and second one, here. While prepping myself to write this, I began to think of analogies. Can happiness be cultivated in the same way a farmer prepares for a good … More Repost: Can Happiness Be Cultivated?
A few days ago, I had a Zoom meeting with Omar, my nephew by marriage. It’s been a while since I last mentioned that I married an Egyptian woman—a truly beautiful person named Azza—a little more than twelve years ago, back when I was living in Cairo, Egypt, and teaching at the American University in … More I Wish You Well, Omar
Dear, Readers, I’m speaking for all Wise & Shine writers when I say that we so appreciate your continued support of this blog. To show how thankful we are, we want to ask you to share a link to your blog or site in the “thoughts” or comments section at the bottom of this page. … More Sharing is Caring
Most of us are familiar with the old saying, “When it rains, it pours.” I’ve been thinking a lot about that adage recently because there’s been quite a lot of pouring rain in my life over the past few months. A few weeks ago, I wrote about needing to take a leave of absence from … More It’s Been Pouring
Hi, all. Wise & Shine is looking for a few new writers. If you’d like to apply to join the team, send samples of your writing via our “Contact” form. Please familiarize yourself with the sort of things our blog publishes before contacting us. We’ll send a set of writing guidelines to those who send … More Want to Write for Wise & Shine?
At the end of last year, this site started a podcast. We came up with a few topics and scheduled conversations, almost entirely among ourselves (those of us who publish our writings on the site). We then recorded those discussions and posted them. We were going at a great clip in the beginning. We managed … More Whatever Happened to the Wise & Shine Podcast?
I’ve been putting off writing this for weeks, maybe months. I’ve been reluctant to admit that I’m going through a tough period right now. For the first time in my life, I’ve been having something similar to a “mid-life crisis,” but that’s not it exactly. I’m not sure there’s a name for what’s been bugging … More Let Me Get This off My Chest
Dear Readers and Listeners, As you know, Wise & Shine started a podcast at the end of last year. As newbies to this sort of thing, we were mostly flying by the seat of our pants during those early episodes. We’ve decided to provide a little thematic focus to the podcast going forward. Here’s what … More New Wise & Shine Podcast Focus
I’m currently reading The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart, with “Willie” being the great Willie Nelson, musician and songwriter extraordinaire. As you might guess from the title, the book, coauthored by Nelson and Turk Pipkin, elucidates the singer’s philosophy of life, which was strongly influenced by Buddhist and Taoist … More Question of the Day (Inspired by the Red-headed Stranger)
In October of last year, Wise & Shine started a podcast. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be recording new episodes for your listening pleasure. Tuesday will be the day we publish new podcasts to the site. If you haven’t already done so, please have a listen to our recordings from 2022. We are interested in hearing … More Wise & Shine Podcasts in 2023
In the latest installment of the Wise & Shine podcast, I talk with Billy Osogo—one of our writers and a brilliant young man who lives in Nairobi, Kenya—about what the world can learn from Africa. In Billy’s very insightful response, he tells me about “Ubuntu” and a variety of other subjects. Have a listen and … More New Podcast: What Can the World Learn from Africa?
Ego. Stature. Money. Talent. Race. Power. Gender. Religion. All the things we love to hate and hate to love. These things account for all the division, toxicity, and bile in our lives. They have a magnifying effect. Especially when one is benefiting from any (or a combination of these) they invoke a ‘larger-than-life’ aura. You … More Want to Sober Up? Try Nature
On Wise & Shine’s newest podcast, I have an entertaining conversation with David (known as “AP2” on this site) about flying airplanes, writing, art, fatherhood, regrets, and other topics. After listening to our talk, check out David’s writing, including “Why I Write,” a piece that got 514 likes when it was first published.
It’s that time of year again when my mind goes back to December of 2003, exactly nineteen years ago now, when I had one of the most profound experiences of my life. A bit earlier in that year, in May of 2003 to be exact, my maternal grandfather, a real-life cowboy and a man I … More I Said Goodbye to a Great Man
Are Americans freer than Europeans? Find out when Troy Headrick and Cristiana (“crisbiecoach”) have a thought-provoking discussion on freedom, enslavement, choice, possessions, money, and a variety of related topics.
Hi! We’ve just posted a new episode of the Wise & Shine podcast. Have a listen as I talk with the uber-talented and insightful Art Russell. In this podcast, we attempt to answer the question “What’s Really Important?” Thanks for tuning in!
I want to tell you about a fellow named David, a retired educator and part-time tutor of mathematics who works in the Math Learning Center, a place just down the hall from the Writing Assistance Center, the place I manage and often mention in blogs I write for Wise & Shine. David is one of … More David’s “Walking Lunches”
Check out Wise & Shine’s new podcast. In our latest episode, I talk with Wynne Leon about “Finding My Father’s Faith,” her memoir. Enjoy!
Politics…has started to metastasize into gleefully naked power grabs in which the basic assumptions that make democracies functional have been replaced by a mosh pit, a zero sum game in which the sole object is the accretion of power. … More Thoughts from the Ledge of Democracy
First of all, let’s just take a moment to enjoy the aesthetic decadence of that word. It’s zippy, it’s got zest. In some ways, as we will see, it captures a greater than zero percentage of the zeitgeist. It is every bit the equal of “zozzled,” a Jazz Age term for drunk. But “zugzwang” isn’t … More Zugzwang