Worldwide Stew

The Obligations of Witnessing

Many years ago, I worked in a little religious school. One of the children could barely speak. She had many siblings. She came to school with bruises. One day she accidentally fell out of the car. I told the principal that we should report the situation. I was told that it wasn’t our business and that reporting them to government authorities wasn’t right. I still anonymously reported them. My employment ended soon thereafter. I guess suspicion that I had called Child Protective Services was enough.

Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back

Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.

When someone says, Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back they are upping the value of their promise. They are saying, You have nothing to lose.

But, even if you are able to get your money back, you’ve still lost something: time and trust. Broken trust steadily erodes our lives and connections. The return of our money can’t return the time and hope for a resolution to our problem.

Finding Wisdom Beyond Desperation

When we lead from wisdom, we must first recognize when desire transforms into craving.

My vision for creating meaningful mindfulness opportunities keeps me motivated, but I’ve noticed how easily genuine passion can transform into an anxious urgency—a shift that rarely allows for clear discernment or thoughtful decision-making.

Operating from desperation narrows our vision. It tempts us toward shortcuts, clouds our understanding, and blinds us to others’ authentic motives and needs.

No, Sir

“I haven’t in the 23 years that I have been in the uniformed services of the USA ever violated an order, not one.” - Oliver North, Iran-Contra Affair testimony.

I grew up in a military family. Yes, Sir. No, Sir. You were supposed to follow orders. Not the orders you chose, but all orders. Perhaps Oliver North - who chose to follow all orders - wouldn’t have ended up testifying before Cngress in the Iran-Contra Scandal if he had chosen to disobey illegal orders. But, he didn’t. Because orders were orders.

Home is where the Toad is

A reflection on home, respect, safety, and artificial intelligence.

With this post I hope to do two things. I want to write about home. And Toads.

I was on a quest to find a happy quotation to seal into a home being built by a friend. Do you have a good blessing, verse, or prayer? Where should I go but my favorite AI, Claude.ai?