“Gardening is about enjoying the smell of things growing in the soil, getting dirty without feeling guilty, and generally taking the time to soak up a little peace and serenity.” ~Lindley Karstens, noproblemgarden.com Chautauqua is alive with many beautiful gardens this time of year, and I find them all wonderfully inspiring. Here are photos of…

“Don’t tell me sky’s the limit when there’s footprints on the moon.” -Buzz Aldrin One of the most inspirational moments of our age was the first time a person walked on the moon, which occurred 50 years ago yesterday. Most of us who are old enough can remember where we were and how we felt when…

“To make a difference in someone’s life you don’t have to be brilliant. Rich. Beautiful. Perfect. You just have to care.” -Mandy Hale This has been National Geographic week at Chautauqua with the theme of A Planet in Balance with some excellent lectures. The message is, as Mandy Hale says, that we just have to…

This powerful video was sent to me by a friend whose daughter made the video and later ended her own life, overcome by the depression and anxiety that had haunted her too long. This is what she says about it: “My daughter Margaret (Peggy) was making a video on depression and anxiety aimed at teenagers…

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now.” -Chinese proverb One of our speakers used that quote this week here at Chautauqua Institution, and it struck me as especially inspirational. Instead of wallowing in guilt over what I haven’t done in the past — which I…

For many students June is an end and often a beginning, complete with ceremony and celebration, and this is a perfect time to look at some of the best commencement speeches. So much inspiration is packed into those minutes on stage. Commencement speeches are often as relevant to me as to the graduates, since like…

Do you agree? Novelists tackle forgiveness often in our fiction. Are our characters stronger because they’re able to forgive the imperfections of others? And how about the people we know in our real lives? What can’t you forgive? Who can’t you forgive? And how do we go about it when we’re ready? Each of us…