Tag: self-development
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Sensitivity Is a Virtue
Sensitivity Is a Virtue, collage on book cover, 2022 We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are. Anaïs Nin I sometimes think I’ve grown more sensitive as I’ve gotten older. Indeed, I seem to have reached that age at which a great deal of popular culture now offends my sensibilities, […]
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On Capturing Moments
Northern Cardinal (male) Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get. Life should be touched, not strangled. You’ve got to relax, let it happen at times, and at others move forward with it. Ray Bradbury I generally prefer the term, “birdwatching” to “birding” when it comes to describing my bird-observing activities (and […]
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Eye, Heart, and Mind
Simplicity, paper collage, 2022 Every human being must have a point at which he stands against the culture, where he says, this is me and the damned world can go to hell. Rollo May When I first started The Used Life in April 2017, I wanted to create a space in which to not only […]
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Part of the Silence
Mourning Dove In order to see birds, it is necessary to become a part of the silence. Robert Lynd I was recently told that my birdwatching hobby is “quaint”. Whether this particular comment was intended to be complimentary or not (I think not), I chose to take it that way. I have, it seems, reached […]
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This is how things really are.
This is how things really are., paper collage, 2022 He holds before his soul his image of perfection and unconsciously tells himself, ‘Forget about the disgraceful creature you actually are; this is how you should be; and to be this idealized self is all that matters. You should be able to endure everything, to understand […]
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On Creative Power
Petite Fleur, paper collage, 2022 There is no good reason why we should not develop and change until the last day we live. Karen Horney I always enjoy reading classic psychology books. They give me a sense of being transported to another time, of experiencing the genesis of ideas that shape how we think even […]
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When We Face Ourselves in Daylight
Pieces No. 14, paper collage, 2022 Every human being has the freedom to change at any instant. Viktor Frankl even now an atom in the drowning sun a wilderness on its knees invokes a whisper as if to suggest absurdity is a prelude to happiness a woman underwater is an orchid without wings don’t be […]
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Productive Perceptions
Perception, paper collage, 2022 When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That’s the message he is sending. Thich Nhat Hanh It occurs to me that, in every situation, I am capable of viewing other […]
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When You Don’t Know, Then You Know
The Impostor, paper collage, 2021 It isn’t normal to know what we want. It is a rare and difficult psychological achievement. A. H. Maslow How easy is it to answer the question, what do you want? My answer: not easy. If I’m being asked what I want for dinner or what I’d like to do […]
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Not At All
Not At All, mixed media, 2021 goodness is wild a solstice of passion an aria for a flannel shirt Goodness is wild. I believe that. I also believe that goodness is something we can see—not with an inner eye, but literally see with our eyes—and would perceive much more readily if we weren’t conditioned not […]
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