I Believe That Imagination Is Stronger Than

For Thirty Years Now, In Times Of Stress And Strain, When Something Has Me Backed Against The Wall And I'm Ready To Do Something Really Stupid With My Anger, A Sorrowful Face Appears In My Mind And Asks... "problem Or Inconvenience?" I Think Of This As The Wollman Test Of Reality. Life Is Lumpy. And A Lump In The Oatmeal, A Lump In The Throat, And A Lump In The Breast Are Not The Same Lump. One Should Learn The Difference.

Be Aware Of Wonder. Live A Balanced Life - Learn Some And Think Some And Draw And Paint And Sing And Dance And Play And Work Every Day Some.

Manuals Have Their Uses ... But They Are Not To Be Confused With Living.

But It Does No Good--solves Nothing--to Distance Myself From The Front Lines Of Human Need By Using The Mail As A Safe Shelter. I Believe That Serving The Best Ends Of Humanity Means Getting Out In The Middle Of It Just As It Is, Not Staying Home Writing Checks And Thinking Hopeful Thoughts. The World Does Not Need Tourists Who Ride By In A Bus Clucking Their Tongues. The World As It Is Needs Those Who Will Love It Enough To Change It, With What They Have, Where They Are. And You're Damned Right That's Idealistic. No Apology. When Idealism Goes Into The Trash As Junk Mail, We're Finished.

Sometimes During The Day, I Consciously Focus On Some Ordinary Object And Allow Myself A Momentary "paying-attention." This Paying-attention Gives Meaning To My Life. I Don't Know Who It Was, But Someone Said That Careful Attention Paid To Anything Is A Window Into The Universe. Pausing To Think This Way, Even For A Brief Moment, Is Very Important. It Gives Quality To My Day.