A Lesson I Had to Grow Into One thing my granddaddy told me did not make much sense when I was younger, but age gave it a different meaning. He said, “Stop crying over money you already lost.” At first, that sounded too easy because losing money can make you feel angry, embarrassed, and disrespected
Sometimes the Money Was Tuition Read More »
What Boys Learn Before They Understand the Lesson When I look back at the way many boys were raised, I realize emotional training started long before we knew we were being trained. A little boy falls down, starts crying, and somebody tells him to get up because boys are supposed to be tough. He reaches
Becoming a Whole Man: Learning the Emotional Language I Was Never Taught Read More »
The Part of My Story You Never Heard Sometimes people decide I became the villain because they only saw the part where I walked away. They saw the distance, the silence, the boundaries, and the version of me that stopped showing up the way I used to. What they did not hear were the conversations
If I Became the Villain in Your Story, So Be It Read More »
When Belief Became Physical I came across a remarkable medical story about a man who believed he had taken enough antidepressant medication to seriously harm himself. Not long afterward, his blood pressure dropped dangerously low, his heart began racing, and his body showed signs of severe distress. He was sweating, trembling, breathing rapidly, and frightening
The Stories We Tell Ourselves Can Reach the Body Read More »
Some Conversations Do Not Belong at Work I have heard the old saying, “Loose lips sink ships,” more times than I can remember, and the older I get, the more wisdom I hear in it. The workplace is one place where that saying can save somebody a whole lot of unnecessary trouble. We spend so
Loose Lips Sink Careers Too Read More »
Beauty Does Affect How People Are Treated I have lived long enough to know that appearance can influence how people respond to one another. Attractive people often receive more attention, more compliments, more patience, and sometimes more opportunities simply because other people like what they see. Psychologists have studied versions of this for years, including
Pretty Privilege Is Real, but Beauty Does Not Explain Everything Read More »
What Would Make Her Smile Today? I heard somebody ask a simple question that made me think about how easily relationships can become complicated: what is one thing a man can do today to make his partner happier? We spend so much time talking about communication, attraction, commitment, intimacy, and the serious parts of relationships
Love Is Often Hidden in the Little Things Read More »
When the Internet Becomes the Dating Coach I have noticed that dating advice has become almost impossible to escape because everybody with a telephone can now become an expert. Men tell other men exactly how women supposedly think, and women tell other women exactly how men supposedly behave. Some of the advice comes from genuine
Dating Advice Has to Survive Real Life Read More »
Learning to Care for the Body I Have The older I get, the more I understand that my body deserves care rather than constant criticism. This body has carried me through every season of my life, including times when I asked more of it than I realized. It has allowed me to walk, work, travel,
Listening to the Hunger Beneath the Hunger Read More »
When Kindness Reaches Its Limit I have often wondered what happens when the kindest person in the room finally reaches the point where enough is enough. We sometimes assume patient people possess an unlimited supply of patience because they have tolerated so much already. They listen, forgive, make allowances, smooth over disagreements, and give people
When the Kindest Person in the Room Has Finally Had Enough Read More »