"A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials." --Seneca This morning, a man approached me at the gas station as I was getting back inside my car--a full tank ready to be used at my command. He asked me if I could spare a couple of dollars to help him pay for a tank of gas. I handed over a few bills, and he thanked me. He also told me how sorry and ashamed he was for having to ask. He said that part several times until I began to feel sorry and ashamed for not having to worry about having enough money for a tank of gas. An errand took me across the street where I observed this man and his wife taking turns with this uncomfortable task, partners as well in the consequent humiliation it triggered. Earlier this week, I attended the memorial service for a colleague's husband who died suddenly from cardiac arrest one day last week. Like that. After dinner and with no warning. He was 64. Moments ago, I had a phone call from a friend who
"Life so far doesn't have any other name but breath and light, wind and rain." Mary Oliver