the second straight Christmas, a philanthropist from Utah’s Capitol Hill has been warming the hearts of the homeless and brightening the smiles of hundreds of their children. The benefactor works year-round raising money, networking with businesses, buying and wrapping gifts, and encouraging random residents to pitch in with presents the underprivileged kids otherwise would never see. Jocelyn Hanrath, an adopted girl too humble to take any credit, is 13. “What Jocelyn has done is just remarkable; it’s delightful,” says Bonnie Peters, executive director of Family Support Center, whose LifeStart Village in Midvale already has seen bulging bags of gifts dropped of... posted on Dec 23 2011 (9,729 reads)

is important to recognize inaccurate stereotypes about the simple life because they make it seem impractical and ill suited for responding to increasingly critical breakdowns in world systems. Four misconceptions about the simple life are so common they deserve special attention. These are equating simplicity with: poverty, moving back to the land, living without beauty and economic stagnation. 1. Simplicity Means Poverty Although some spiritual traditions have advocated a life of extreme renunciation, it is very misleading to equate simplicity with poverty. Poverty is involuntary and debilitating, whereas simplicity is voluntary and enabling. A life of conscious simplicity can h... posted on Dec 24 2011 (32,216 reads)

charismatic ex-con lures at-risk kids away from violence. One bitter night, in the rough end of New Haven, Connecticut, fifteen-year-old Vinny Ferraro and his friends were hanging out as usual by the projects, near the corner where Ferraro sold drugs—mostly coke, but also heroin, hash, and LSD. His father, a junkie and career criminal, had schooled Ferraro in the trade. “You’re the man of the house now,” he had told Ferraro over the phone from prison—meaning Ferraro was expected to sell drugs to support his mother, also an addict, and two sisters. In fact, Ferraro couldn’t remember a time before drugs or the constant, gut-gnawing menace and pa... posted on Feb 2 2012 (16,402 reads)

human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world—that is the myth of the “atomic age”—as in being able to remake ourselves. —Mahatma Gandhi [...] [Some] people tell me I am being idealistic about human nature. “It would be nice,” they say, “if we human beings could override impulses like fear, greed, and violence when we see that they threaten the welfare of the whole. But that’s just not realistic. Whenever there is a conflict between reason and biology, biology is bound to win.” Arguing like this, some observers feel that we have passed the point of no return. Like lemmings, they see... posted on Jan 9 2012 (22,788 reads)

group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds: "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think... _____ "When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." Rebecca - age 8 _____ "When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." Billy - age 4 _____ "Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.... posted on Dec 29 2010 (630,901 reads)

is the relationship between strength and vulnerability?" This was a question for Jacques Verduin, a remarkable activist who has long been working with inmates at San Quentin, a prison notorious for its toughness. We often think of vulnerability as weakness, but Jacques had a unique perspective. In response, he described his very first workshop, which focused on addiction recovery. Before it even started, one of the prisoners was already testing him. "So what drugs have you done?" When Jacques admitted to having had relatively limited experience, the man balked. "What are you going to teach us about recovering from addiction, when you haven't... posted on Jan 13 2012 (30,167 reads)

in 2012 Our 5-yr-old son Aum had been playing on his own at the farm for two hours. About an hour into it, my wife Nisha admonished me: "You really enjoyed your childhood with your two siblings, kids in the neighborhood and at school. Now look at him, being alone, no one to play with and nowhere to go. Do something!" 4 years ago, we'd made a conscious leap into a rural India, leaving high-tech careers in the Silicon Valley to do natural farming. Nisha has just as much conviction about our decision as I do, and yet, on occasion, she and many other loved ones have genuinely felt bad because Aum does not have company. He is our only child and he doesn't ... posted on Apr 26 2020 (47,787 reads)

3M employee, was singing in the church's choir when his page marker fell out of his hymnal. Fry coated his page markers with Silver's adhesive and discovered the markers stayed in place, yet lifted off without damaging the page. Hence the Post-it Notes were born. Thomas Edison was always trying to spring board from one idea to another in his work. He spring boarded his work from the telephone (sounds transmitted) to the phonograph (sounds recorded) and, finally, to motion pictures (images recorded). 7.      Expect the experts to be negative. The more expert and specialized a person becomes,  the more their mindset becomes narrowed an... posted on Jan 18 2012 (60,695 reads)

is always humming from somewhere. It is usually low and musical as patients try to distract themselves from phantom limb pain that is not at all phantom. It is 13 days after the earthquake. I am coordinating a 12-member team at St. Marc’s hospital, a government facility on the west coast of Haiti. For the 2 years prior to the quake, Partners in Health has supported the site with materials and salary. An orthopedic surgeon, a plastic surgeon, an anesthesiologist, an emergency room physician and five nurses are with me from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. There is a friendly Haitian pastor who walks daily into the medical ward. He raises his hands and prays ... posted on Jan 19 2012 (10,619 reads)

Mozambique I CAME to Africa with one purpose: I wanted to see the world outside the perspective of European egocentricity. I could have chosen Asia or South America. I ended up in Africa because the plane ticket there was cheapest. I came and I stayed. For nearly 25 years I’ve lived off and on in Mozambique. Time has passed, and I’m no longer young; in fact, I’m approaching old age. But my motive for living this straddled existence, with one foot in African sand and the other in European snow, in the melancholy region of Norrland in Sweden where I grew up, has to do with wanting to see clearly, to understand. The simplest way to explain what I&rs... posted on Jan 17 2012 (30,182 reads)

everybody acted in a simple and human way, we’d all be saints." --Don Sergio Castro, “El Andalón” Three blocks from the’ zocalo’, the main square where at nightfall people gather to watch the Marimba municipal orchestra, in the charming city of San Cristobal de Las Casas, Sergio Castro receives the meek, the worthless, the outcasts of Mexican society in his free medical clinic. Some of his patients are sent to him by local hospitals, especially in hopeless cases; when, for example, amputation seems to be the only option. Sergio is seen by many as the last hope. People come to him with gangrene, hoping that they will be able... posted on Jan 22 2012 (19,214 reads)

supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play.” - Arnold Toynbee   Following your passion can be a tough thing. But figuring out what that passion is can be even more elusive.   I’m lucky — I’ve found my passion, and I’m living it. I can testify that it’s the most wonderful thing, to be able to make a living doing what you love.   And so, in this little guide, I’d like to help you get started figuring out what you’d love doing. This turns out to be one of the most common problems of many Zen Habits readers — including many who recently responded to me on Twitter.... posted on Feb 5 2012 (86,782 reads)

Gandhi on the Power of One, from a January DailyGood] [A] faith in the power of the individual formed the foundation for Gandhi’s extremely compassionate view of the industrial era’s large-scale problems, as well as of the smaller but no less urgent troubles we found in our own lives. Our problems, he would say, are not inevitable; they are not, as some historians and biologists have suggested, a necessary side effect of civilization. On the contrary, war, economic injustice, and pollution arise because we have not yet learned to make use of our most civilizing capacities: the creativity and wisdom we all have as our birthright. When even one person c... posted on Feb 17 2012 (80,670 reads)

it may not have been a typical extra-curricular activity, 17-year-old Angela Zhang's after school project may change the world. Zhang has been making headlines recently after taking home a check of $100,000 from the national Siemens science contest, and now it has been suggested that her research could lead to a potential cure for cancer. "I created a nanoparticle that's kind of like the Swiss Army knife of cancer treatment in that it can detect cancer cells, eradicate the cancer cells and then monitor the treatment response. So the major aim of the project was to personalize cancer medicine," Zhang told ABC News. The teen bega... posted on Feb 18 2012 (19,949 reads)

LAUDERDALE — They may be the most amazing story at the Super Bowl, this immigrant father who sought the American dream and the son he can't see play in America's biggest game. That's a small joy most parents take for granted: seeing your child play a game. Watching him grow in sports over the years. Enjoying the best moments as much as he does. But Jean Pierre-Paul is led by the arm down a small hallway of his Fort Lauderdale home, then places his hand against the couch, to confirm he's reached it. "It's just my life, I'm blind,'' he says in Creole through a translator. "Some days are good days, some days are bad days. Sunda... posted on Feb 22 2012 (8,750 reads)

are quick to connect with each other by telling stories and passing along gossip via texting and social media.  But students have lost the art of listening face to face by hiding behind the veil of anonymity. They talk at each other (of course, we adults do this too). As a public high school teacher, I clearly see a need for teens to learn to listen intently.    In fact, few of us in modern society know how to listen.  Henning Mankell’s recent piece on DailyGood only reiterated today’s penchant for incessant white noise chatter.  In the African parable retold by Mankell, our two ears and one mouth are a reminder that we are designed to l... posted on Feb 25 2012 (19,056 reads)

many years I worked in palliative care. My patients were those who had gone home to die. Some incredibly special times were shared. I was with them for the last three to twelve weeks of their lives. People grow a lot when they are faced with their own mortality. I learnt never to underestimate someone's capacity for growth. Some changes were phenomenal. Each experienced a variety of emotions, as expected, denial, fear, anger, remorse, more denial and eventually acceptance. Every single patient found their peace before they departed though, every one of them. When questioned about any regrets they had or anything they would do differently, common themes surfaced again and again.... posted on Feb 23 2012 (261,840 reads)

newly-adopted cat repaid his owner's loving gesture earlier this month by saving her from a medical emergency just hours after he was brought home, the Green Bay Press Gazette reports. Amy Jung and her son Ethan stopped into The Humane Society near their home in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin on Feb. 8 to play with the cats, but one feline -- a 21-pound orange-and-white cat named Pudding -- stood out to the pair. Jung learned that the laid-back cat had been in and out of the shelter since 2003, and made an impulsive decision to adopt him and his friend Wimsy. Jung said the cats wasted no time fitting into their new home when they arrived. But just hours later, the Ju... posted on Feb 27 2012 (25,963 reads)

Melville's father was skeptical when his son first said that he wanted to use the profits from his successful summer lemonade stand to start his own soda company. Aaron Melville, who teaches business classes at a local college, did not believe his 9-year-old autistic son was ready to run his own business. Kent was determined to do something to help others with autism, however, which inspired his father to reconsider. Aaron described on a Facebook page for the organization, why he decided to help his son start Kent's Soda after initially encouraging him to wait until he was older. Kent pondered that for a minute. He then looked at me and said "Dad, ... posted on Mar 15 2012 (26,937 reads)

week I meet with a group of Los Angeles business owners and entrepreneurs - men and women from very different fields who share a common vision of being self-supporting through self-employment. Among the group are doctors, accountants, attorneys, real estate agents, writers, architects, artists, actors, PR agents, personal trainers, professional speakers, headhunters, musicians, construction contractors, literary agents, photographers, landscapers, and more. The topic for this week's meeting was: "What are you doing to keep your business going in these crazy-making economic times?" Several people said they have upped the number of cold calls they're making; other... posted on Mar 19 2012 (41,331 reads)