“The ideal man takes joy in doing favors for others,” Aristotle has said.

And the Bible commands us to perform a “mitzvah,” a good deed or moral imperative every day.

What favors, large or small, have you been asked to do?  Which have you done spontaneously?  Have you done any begrudgingly?  And what favors have you asked of others?

Think back about Favors and share forward!

Do you or someone you know have a quick temper, a short fuse?  Someone around whom others tread lightly,  careful to watch what they say fearing an angry outburst? Someone like Joe Pesce’s character in Goodfellas?

Think back about Short Fuse and share forward!

What is the most dangerous thing you’ve ever done?  Did you do it voluntarily or involuntarily?  Was anyone else involved?

What was the outcome of your action?  What did you learn from your experience?

Think back about Dangerous Deeds and share forward!

Have you ever thought about the influences your hometown had on your life and the person you’ve become?  How much daylight lies between the concepts of “where I’m from” and “who I am” for you?

What was it about the place and the people who grew up there that turned out to be important for you?

Think back about Is Where I’m From Who I Am?  and share forward!

Most of us do it. Maybe we do it regularly, or maybe we haven’t done it since college. Maybe we do it at home, or maybe we do it at the laundromat.

But however you do your laundry, do you find it a burdensome chore, or do you find it relaxing or even pleasurable?

Have you had funny laundry experiences? Or laundry catastrophes? And have you ever aired any dirty laundry?

Think back about Laundry and share forward!

“Dreaming is a way to pass the time / dreaming everything will turn out fine  / Dreaming is the only thing that’s mine / Me, I live in dreams.”   – Judy Collins

Have you related to daydreams in your life?  Do you try to make them a reality, or do you see them as a momentary escape? Have your daydreams ever inspired you to moments of daring, great insight, or to creative achievement?

Think back about Daydreaming and share forward!

Have you ever passed strangers on the street, or seen a couple in a restaurant and found that an overheard snippet of their conversation, their expressions, or their body language was so intriguing you found yourself wondering about their lives and imagining their back stories?

Think back about Imagined Lives and share forward!

Prejudice is an injury or damage resulting from some unwarranted judgment of or action upon a person in disregard of that person’s rights.

Have you ever felt that you or anyone you know were the target of prejudice because of race, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, or simply because of their beliefs? Have you ever felt a trace of prejudice in your own perceptions or actions towards others?

Think back about Prejudice and share forward!

As the saying goes “Friends are the family we choose.”  Indeed a friend for life is a precious gift,  but sometimes it doesn’t work out that way.

What ended the friendship might be the abrupt surfacing of a major difference – all too common since 2020 –  or the slow erosion of feeling over the years,   or geographic distance,  or divergent personal growth.  But whatever it is,  it hurts.

Think back about Ex-Friends and share forward!

On Veterans Day we think of the sacrifice of our vets and celebrate their return.

But for many, coming home may be quite stressful as they suffer vivid memories or recurring nightmares; or are met by disparaging anti-war groups and sentiments; or must deal with problems re-assimilating to their communities or returning to work.  Or simply because the world that veterans return to may be very different from the world they left.

Are  you, or is or a friend or a loved one a vet who faced such a situation?

Think about Veterans Day and share forward.