It is Memorial Day in America. Today, we pause to honor the men and women who gave their lives in service to our nation. Memorial Day began as Decoration Day, a tradition of placing flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers — a simple act of remembrance that grew into a national day of reflection. This week’s quote/poem comes from In Flanders Fields, written during World War I by Canadian physician Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae after losing a close friend in battle. The poppies he describes soon became a symbol of remembrance across the world.

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In Flanders' fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
     That mark our place: and in the sky
     The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
     Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
          In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
     The torch; be yours to hold it high.
     If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
          In Flanders fields.

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Explore Further 

Flanders Field Reading

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTfkH4PFTP0

Video; Decoration Day in Brooklyn, NY (you may see my Uncle and Grandmother)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxfoFrSP9Pc

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Wishing you a most beautiful day, wherever this may find you!

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 What do you do when you’re no longer the person you used to be? For some reason, that thought has crossed my mind lately ;-). Tennyson wrestled with it after losing his closest friend. He realized he wasn’t the hero who once “moved earth and heaven.” But what mattered wasn’t the fading of old strength. It was the stubborn, steady will to keep going, even changed by time and loss. That’s the spirit behind this week's quote...

"Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."

Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "Ulysses"

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This week's Care Package...

A Question to ponder: 

Will I focus on what's gone, or on what abides?

Poem (full text): 

Tennyson's "Ulysses" at Poetry Foundation

Article: Search for Alfred Tennyson's "Ulysses"

https://victorianweb.org/authors/tennyson/ulysses.html

YouTube: "Ulysses Tennyson reading" on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqagmU4Fais

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A Couple of Mantras to Carry Forward...

Remember: The horizon still calls!

Still striving. Still seeking. Still me.  

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

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 What if the very thing you’re afraid to risk is the doorway to the version of yourself you’ve been trying to grow into?  This week’s quote reminds us that a meaningful part of being human requires stepping into uncertainty, not away from it:  

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"To laugh is to risk being a fool. To weep is to risk appearing sentimental. 

"To reach out to another is to risk involvement. To express feelings is to risk exposing your true self. 

To place your ideas, your dreams, before the crowd is to risk their loss. 

To love is to risk not being loved in return. 

To live is to risk dying. To hope is to risk despair. 

To try is to risk failure. 

The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing and is nothing. 

They may avoid suffering and sorrow, but they simply cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love or live. 

Only a person who risks is free." 

Leo Buscaglia  

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This week's Care Package

Two Questions to Explore

• Which of these risks are you currently avoiding, and what is it costing you?
• What would become possible if you accepted that risk is the price of aliveness?

TED Talk:  The Power of Vulnerability | Brené Brown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCvmsMzlF7o

Who is Leo Buscaglia?

Felice Leonardo Buscaglia (1924–1998), widely known as "Dr. Love," was an American author, motivational speaker, and a professor at the University of Southern California (USC). 

He became a cultural phenomenon in the 1980s for his heartfelt teachings on the necessity of love, human connection, and physical affection.

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Wishing you a most vulnerable day wherever this may find you!

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“To risk is to live, and to live is to be free.”  

Serving the Psycho-Spiritual Needs of People since 1984!! Welcome to the Quote of the Week. This week, an old phrase found me again — three simple words with deep philosophical roots that I first discovered years ago. They arrived at just the right moment, offering me the perspective I need for something I've been working through. 

 "Is that so?"

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This Week's Care Package

The Story Behind the Quote Three options:

• Kannon Do Zen Center — "Is That So?" (Deep, contemplative)
• Zen Kindle — "Is That So? Zen Story" (Clear, accessible)
• Inquiring Mind — Personal Reflection on the Story (More personal and reflective)

A Podcast: Finding Equanimity

"Finding Equanimity in Chaos" — Sam Harris on the 10% Happier Podcast 

A Song: "Let It Be"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDYfEBY9NM4

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Bonus Care Package:  The Story of Hakuin

The most famous philosophical use comes from the Zen master Hakuin (1686–1769). When a young woman became pregnant and her parents accused Hakuin of being the father, he responded simply: "Is that so?" He accepted the child and raised it without protest. A year later, the woman confessed the real father was someone else. When the parents came to retrieve the child with apologies, Hakuin again said only: "Is that so?"

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  Stay open, don't cling, don't resist, and let reality be what it is.  

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

 Welcome to the Quote of the Week!  Serving the Psycho-Spiritual Needs of People since 1984!!  Thinking about getting on a path to enlightenment??  This week's quote is a reminder that enlightenment is simply remembering that you already have what you need to begin!  

"The path to enlightenment isn’t really a path at all.
It’s a metaphor for the moment you finally allow yourself to be at peace with who you already are,
where you already are, and what you already have — no matter what."

Harry Soosaar

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CARE PACKAGE: Being at Peace With Who You Already Are

3 Questions to Think More Deeply

1. Where in my life am I still acting as if I need to “arrive” somewhere before I can feel at ease?

2. What parts of myself or my life are already enough — even if I rarely acknowledge them?

3. If enlightenment is permission rather than progress, what permission do I most need to give myself today?

Article: “The Disease of More” — Mark Manson

https://markmanson.net/do-we-ever-feel-we-have-enough?utm_source=ForTheInterestedNewsletter

TED Talk: “The Art of Being Yourself” — Caroline McHugh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veEQQ-N9xWU

3 Songs that echo the quote...

“Unwritten” — Natasha Bedingfield
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7k0a5hYnSI

“Let It Be” — The Beatles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDYfEBY9NM4 

“Brave” — Sara Bareilles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUQsqBqxoR4

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

Choose your next step with courage.”

Are you like me and sometimes spend too much time waiting for life to start, rather than actually living it? We often worry about how short life is, but the real mistake is how long we wait to dive in. This week's quote by W.M. Lewis offers a perfect reflection on this dilemma.

"The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it."

W.M. Lewis

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Care Package

3 Reflective Questions

The "Wait" Audit: If I knew for a fact that the "perfect conditions" I’m waiting for would never arrive, what small version of my goal would I start today?

The Energy Check: Which part of my daily routine am I doing because I want to, and which part am I doing just to "get through the day" to reach a future point?

The Eulogy Test: If I look back from the end of my life, will I be more grateful for the risks I took to live fully now, or the safety I maintained by waiting?

Article: The Overlooked and Misunderstood Arrival Fallacy

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/mindfulness-insights/202503/the-overlooked-and-misunderstood-arrival-fallacy

 

Song: What are you waiting for?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtBPPr_GVUg

2 Mantras to help you live this week's quote

  "The time is now; the person is me." |  "Start before you’re ready."

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

 What if the peace we’ve been searching for isn’t somewhere down the road—but in the way we treat people today? Novelist, Jack Kerouac had a thought on that with this week's quote.

"Practice kindness all day to everybody and 

you will realize you're already in heaven now."
Jack Kerouac

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This week's Care Package

A Song: What the World Needs Now Is Love
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUaxVQPohlU

A Kindness Reflection...

Kindness isn’t just something we give—it’s something we experience.
Every smile, every kind word, every moment of patience… it all adds up.
Maybe heaven isn’t a destination. Maybe it’s a daily practice.

A Call to Action...

Today, offer one unexpected act of kindness—and notice what it does for you.

Questions to ponder:

• How would your day feel different if you treated kindness as your primary objective?
• What if "being in heaven" is simply a matter of attention and behavior, not belief or circumstance?

Explore Further:

Random Acts of Kindness Foundation
https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/the-science-of-kindness

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

 Sometimes you hear something that makes you pause and look at your own life a little differently. This week's quote by Jane Goodall made me think and maybe it will do the same for you. It’s not about perfection — it’s about noticing your “reason” and simply doing your “bit.”

"Every day you live, you make a difference.
You matter. You're here for a reason.
Find the reason. And do your bit.
Then, we can save the world."

Jane Goodall

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Care Package for your consideration

Questions to Ponder

What's your unique "bit" that only you can contribute?
Have you been waiting for permission to matter, when you already do?

More about Jane Goodall...

A youtube short https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2GKxZ6NGKXs (Youtube short)

Article: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/jane-goodall/

Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LAnn1nRp0M

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

PS An Action-Oriented Mantra''...

“Each day, I do my part to make the world better.”

 

In the US, our culture is of hustle and urgency, however this Italian wisdom offers a different mathematics: speed often leads to burnout or error, while steady patience ensures you actually reach the destination. The tortoise understood what the hare did not. (BTW ~ This quote is dedicated to our Quote of the Week friends in Italy~ Silvia, Raffaele, Michaela, Stefania, Elena and Gian!! ~ "Buon cammino a tutti"

Piano piano, si va lontano."  
(Slowly, slowly, one goes far.)

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Care Package; Questions to Explore | 

• Where are you trying to sprint a marathon?
• What long-term goal might benefit from a slower, more sustainable pace?

Explore Further:

• Article: "Slow productivity" - Cal Newport's work on sustainable achievement
• Video Topic: Search for "Italian philosophy of slow living" - la dolce vita and life pacing

April 13, 2026

Quote: "Practice kindness all day to everybody and you will realize you're already in heaven now." - Jack Kerouac

Intro: Kerouac, the restless wanderer always searching for enlightenment, eventually realized that paradise isn't a destination to reach but a practice to embody. Heaven isn't somewhere we go when we die—it's what we create through how we treat each moment and each person.

Questions:

• How would your day feel different if you treated kindness as your primary objective?
• What if "being in heaven" is simply a matter of attention and behavior, not belief or circumstance?

Explore Further:

• Article Topic: Random acts of kindness research - effects on giver and receiver
• Video: "The Science of Kindness" - psychological and physiological benefits

We’re three days into Spring now, and I have been seeing a lot of those little buds on the trees and plants waiting to open. This week's quote by Anais Nin sort of reminds us ( me) that Spring is nature’s way of showing us that it's finally time to let go and just see what happens when we open up."

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was 

more painful than the risk it took to blossom."

Anaïs Nin

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This week's Care Package ~ 

Questions for you (me) to Ponder:

“What’s one 'bud' you’ve been keeping tight that might be ready to bloom?”
“What feels more ‘risky’ right now: changing, or staying exactly where you are?”

"If you look at the buds outside today, they aren't 'trying' to bloom—they're just responding to the light. What's one area of your life where you can stop 'trying' so hard and just start responding to what you already know is true?"  

TED Talk: "Why Real Change is Uncomfortable (And Why That's Necessary" by Palak Chawan)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05bfeZX93Qo

Songs that speaks to the Quote

"Keep Breathing" by Ingrid Michaelson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Svfd999aej8

"Brave" by Sara Bareilles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUQsqBqxoR4

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If you find yourself in any of these seasons of change or reflection, let these mantras guide you.

Career Transition:“I trust the risk of change more than the safety of standing still.”

Career Management: “Growth is my direction, not my destination.”

Personal Growth: “I give myself permission to blossom.”

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

It’s St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow, but this week’s quote reaches back centuries before shamrocks and celebrations. The Roman Stoic Seneca reminds us that there’s far more to luck than the chance of finding a four‑leaf clover...

 

"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity." 

Seneca

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Care PackageRead & Explore More:

Article: How to Create Your Own Luck: 5 Easy Practices

https://fortelabs.com/blog/how-to-create-your-own-luck-5-easy-practices/

TEDTALK: The little risks you can take to increase your luck

https://www.ted.com/talks/tina_seelig_the_little_risks_you_can_take_to_increase_your_luck

A Question to Ponder:

What’s one area of your life where a little preparation could turn the next opportunity into “luck”?

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Wishing you a most beautiful and lucky day wherever this may find you! And Happy St Patrick's Day!  

 Welcome to the Quote of the Week — serving the psycho-spiritual needs of people on the go since 1984. What if you stopped chasing perfection and simply showed up as you are? Steinbeck reminds us that perfectionism is paralysis in disguise; “good” is often excellent — and always better than the perfect that never happens.  

When you stop trying to be perfect, you can finally be good."

John Steinbeck, East of Eden

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Care Package to Explore and Contemplate 

Questions:

Where is your perfectionism preventing you from being effective?

What "good enough" work have you been avoiding because it can't be perfect?

Article; Brené Brown; Perfectionism is armor

 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/brenebrown_perfectionism-is-armor-perfectionism-is-activity-6422223430090846208-thst/

Tedtalk: Done is better than Perfect

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=done+is+better+than+perfect

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!

 What if the most important decisions you make this year depend on how honestly you answer one simple question: Whose life are you actually living? It’s a question that hits differently as I (we) get older and start to see how easy it is to slip into living by other people’s expectations.  This week’s Steve Jobs quote speaks directly to that:

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”

Steve Jobs

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Care Package to Explore and Contemplate

Questions to Ask yourself: 

Are you building a life you enjoy, or a life that looks good to others?
If you lost your internet connection for a week, what hobbies or passions would resurface?

Article to read: The Joy of Missing Out (JOMO) – Why saying "no" is the ultimate 2026 power move.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/happiness-is-state-mind/201807/jomo-the-joy-missing-out

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Wishing you a most beautiful day wherever this may find you!