10 Pieces of Wisdom for Painters
Artist Leigh Hyams of San Miguel Allende, Mexico writes, "I found this script today in a forgotton portfolio. It was dictated to me by my four-year-old granddaughter Annalena, who could not write then, but she knew how to advise people to paint and draw. I like her advice enormously, not to mention her attitude..." Here's just one example of Annalena's painting wisdom: "When I don't have anything ... posted on Jul 23 2010, 4,391 reads

Entrepreneur of Small Things
Jay Shafer lives in an 8-by-12 foot house. He built it from scratch. With no prior carpentry knowledge or experience. "I'm sure there are people out there who think I'm crazy for living so small, but living in this little house has allowed me to totally reinvent my life," he says. With a desire to "escape the rat race," the former grocery-store clerk's intentions were simple: focus on the things h... posted on Jul 22 2010, 9,197 reads

365 Days of Happiness
"Great wife, amazing kids, a full head of hair - like so many people I felt I had no real grounds for feeling unhappy. But all too often I did, and it was getting me down." At 44, Cathal Morrow found himself getting bogged down by the trials and tribulations of daily life and spending "a decent amount of time veering between mildly piqued and downright upset." But then it dawned on him: he was hap... posted on Jul 20 2010, 6,276 reads

Woman Behind a Movement
She's the woman behind Americorps and Obama's Corporation for National and Community Service. Radiating service from White House conference rooms to grassroots nonprofits, Shirley Sagawa is making community service a staple in the United States. Her belief? That it will change the nation, for the better. Named by author Steve Waldman as the "founding mother of the modern service movement," Sagawa ... posted on Jul 17 2010, 2,202 reads

Remembering Peace Pilgrim
From 1953 to 1981, a silver-haired woman walked over 25,000 miles on a personal pilgrimage for peace. Crossing the United States seven times with nothing more than a toothbrush, some pamphlets, and a navy sweatshirt, she vowed to "remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food." Leading a fairly ordinary life up through young ... posted on Jul 16 2010, 3,513 reads

Leap of Faith
Susan Schaller's story, comparable to "the Miracle Worker, is still not widely known. Perhaps it's so amazing, it's hard to grasp. How can one understand what it means not to have a language at all? For a man already 27 years old, to be in such a situation was considered completely hopeless. Fortunately, Schaller didn't know the situation was considered hopeless. Instead, she followed her instinct... posted on Jul 13 2010, 6,806 reads

A Small Act
Chris Mburu feels fortunate to have received an education at all. Growing up in a mud house in Kenya, it seemed unlikely that he or his neighbors would escape a cycle of poverty. Today, Mburu is a Harvard Law School graduate and works as a human rights advocate for the United Nations. How did this happen? A small and consistent act of hope from a teacher in Sweden. Years ago, Hilda Back decided to... posted on Jul 09 2010, 3,425 reads

The Compliment Guys
"I like your jeans." "I like your brown shoes." "Have a nice day!" Don't you love it when someone says something nice about you? Doesn't that brighten your day? Imagine how wonderful your day would be if someone said something nice about you, just because. Brett Westcott and Cameron Brown, also known as The Compliment Guys at Purdue University, are doing exactly that. "When people come up after th... posted on Jul 05 2010, 3,491 reads

Generosity Water
What happens to a young man who has been a successful business person since the 8th grade, who by his senior year was earning six figures then loses it all when the real estate market goes under? Well, if you're Jordan Wagner, you bring clean drinking water to people in need. "I had lost everything I had made. This humbling experience helped me realize that I had been living a pretty selfish lifes... posted on Jul 04 2010, 1,940 reads

A Global Teacher
From a tiny closet in Mountain View, California, Sal Khan is educating the globe for free. His 1,516 videotaped mini-lectures -- on topics ranging from simple addition to vector calculus and Napoleonic campaigns-- are transforming the former hedge fund analyst into a YouTube sensation, reaping praise from even reluctant students across the world. "I think he rocks. I'm studying pre-algebra and I l... posted on Jul 01 2010, 5,540 reads