Maximum Gratitude, Minimal Stuff

Dear readers, there is a power in each one of us that we must not abandon or fail to use.  It's our conscience, our sense of decency, morality, and kindness that most people in the world share. The president of my country has taken us to war – without our consent, and with rude disregard for both the spirit and the letter of our constitution. But it's worse than that.  It's worse than the damage to infrastructure and shipping that will lead to an oil crisis, not just here in the U.S. or in Europe, but in China, India, South Korea, Japan, and other eastern nations.  It's worse than the possibility of global recession. Absolutely not a game The words and actions of the leaders of my country have alienated our long-time allies and made us hated around the world.  It's horrifying to realize that we may deserve this. While Iranian families were burying their children, the White House posted a spliced video of American football players tackling each other alongside foota...

Maybe you've tried to build savings in the past and a surprise bill messed you up.  Today, with prices continuing to climb at the grocery store and everywhere else, you might have given up. I've been there too.  For years, my husband and I would save a little only to draw the account down a few months later.  Inflation or life events would derail our plans. When costs are unpredictable, saving can start to feel impossible.  But building savings doesn't have to rely on willpower, perfect timing, or a lucky lottery win.  Instead, you can focus on small, repeatable systems that work with real life, no matter what happens.  These are systems that keep moving forward even when prices climb or plans change. Steps to make saving a reality 1.  Start small with a "savings drip."  Psychologically, tiny deposits keep momentum going in the right direction without triggering scarcity, especially when the cost of groceries, utilities, and insurance premiums may...

Have you given up Netflix for Lent?  Or maybe you plan to stay off Facebook or Instagram for now.  Or you might be staying home from restaurants, bars, or the casino.  If you're giving up one of your usual entertainment options, you may suddenly have a lot of free time and not much idea of what to do with it. Trying a new hobby is a great idea, but if you're the type who usually goes all in, that can get complicated and expensive very quickly.  You could buy a guitar and sign up for lessons, only to let it sit and collect dust after watching one YouTube tutorial.  You could purchase a tennis racket and a cute court-approved outfit, but discover that you don't have the speed or hand-eye coordination to play the game. So you don't want an activity that requires an investment in a lot of expensive new supplies.  Minimalist hobbies are the answer since they're low-budget, easy to abandon if they're not the right fit, and don't require lots of shopping to get st...

A clutter-free home is a gift to yourself.  Decluttering removes stress, chaos, and visual weight, and adds peace, space to learn and grow, and time for true rest and relaxation. But the work of decluttering can be such a burden!  It can be exhausting and time-consuming to clear out a cluttered home. Fear not!  Say goodbye to hours (or days) of grueling exertion.  If you hate decluttering, don't have time for it, or started and got burned-out on the process, you'll love my passive methods that let you declutter with little to no effort. 10 easiest decluttering strategies 1.  Hanger trick (use for clothes and accessories) Maybe you've heard of this one.  Simply turn all of your hangers backwards!  When you choose a garment to wear, turn its hanger to face the normal way.  At the end of a month or a season it's easy to see what you wore and what you didn't.  Now you can declutter everything that's still hanging backwards without any worry or d...

You know how good a warm room and dry clothes feel after you've been really cold and wet.  How refreshing a glass of ice water is on a hot and sticky day.  How comforting it is to relax in bed after a day of hard work.  How uplifting it is to smile and chat (even briefly) with someone friendly after a period of isolation. Those good things are made better by contrast.  We appreciate them more because of the not-so-good situations that preceded them. Our human condition No one escapes difficulties.  Maybe you have fewer than some (I hope so), but no one's life is perfect all the time.  My 28-year-old niece has an incurable neurological disorder.  She and her doctors are managing it well for now, but the disease is unpredictable, and severe attacks can come at any time. My husband's colleague has cancer.  She's 20 years (at least) younger than I am, yet she has to think about the possibility of dying in a year or two. I'm sure all of you know people...

Did you watch any of the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics?  I've always loved watching the figure skating and ice dancing.  My son gets a kick out of curling.  My grandsons were excited by the snowboarding.  My husband enjoys hockey, especially this year when he had a distant connection to the team.  The daughter of a lifelong friend of one of Jon's colleagues skated for the U.S.  Forward Abbey Murphy won the gold medal along with her teammates in a tense overtime match against Canada.  Congratulations! Isn't it great to witness those incredible performances, the feats of strength, agility, endurance, and mental fortitude?  No matter who wins, it's moving to realize what that athlete has accomplished, and what every athlete who has participated in the Games has achieved.  How often do you get to witness such joy and fulfillment? What comes next? But once you've reached to top of your game, what comes next?  How does anyone, world class at...