Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays. The debate still plays out bitterly, with people in both camps grumbling Grinchily about the supposed ill intentions of the other. But they’re missing the point. Increasingly I’ve realized that what we should be paying attention to instead is something different: the other word in the greeting, the feeling we’re urging… Read more »
It’s the most wonderful time of the year. It’s the busiest time of the year. For retailers, it may be the most profitable time of the year. But for me? I just look at the pile of sale flyers heaped up on my kitchen counter and I cringe. Then I make a trip to the… Read more »
This article was originally published November 5, 2010, volume 18 issue 44. ?This thing all things devours: Birds, beasts, trees, flowers; Gnaws iron, bites steel; Grinds hard stones to meal; Slays king, ruins town, And beats high mountain down.? J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit Time: the very word is an enigma, and the concept has intrigued… Read more »
When we were kids, it was all about the ?no.? In our first years, ?no? was our favourite response. Come indoors. No. Put away your toys. No. Eat your spinach. No, no, no! No was a bad word. Once we left the preschool years, though, that ?no? became a shining star?a goal to pursue, a… Read more »
This past week, borders were blurred as North Americans set aside their differences for the day and remembered September 11 and those who lost their lives in the tragedy. I can’t watch the footage anymore. Now that I have a child, it somehow hits a part of me that didn’t exist when I was young… Read more »
When I was a preteen, underachieving became cool. Well, not cool in the sense of failing out your classes (though I was labelled as a ?browner? and I never could tell whether it was supposed to be an insult). Rather, That’s when ripped jeans appeared on the in-crowd and kids sported tees emblazoned with the… Read more »
This article is adapted from the original, first published July 15, 2011, in issue 1926. The sky is sunny and the temperature’s warm?and your new box of course materials has just arrived. So why aren’t you feeling more motivated? Although many students continue their course work during the summer, the vibe is often more relaxed…. Read more »
The Olympics are coming to a close, and once more the drama of shocking wins and disappointing losses will fade away as we gear up for our more hectic fall and winter schedules. And yet there’s one thing that will stay with me for good, I think: the somewhat counterintuitive thought that sometimes, It’s better… Read more »
Every year, I find myself writing about quiet. Sometimes It’s a brush with nature that sets into motion a craving for silence, for a relief from the frenzied bustle of human-created activity. Sometimes It’s a sudden appreciation for the peaceful background noise that surrounds us?that so-called ?white noise? that is as much a part of… Read more »
This article is adapted from one originally published August 5, 2011, in issue 1929. ?Winners never quit, and quitters never win,? the motivational poster says, and the sentiment is echoed in many aspects of life. Rarely is there a hero who pauses, changes course, and then restarts a quest in a different direction?and succeeds. In… Read more »