Monthly Archives: January 2025

virtue.

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This letter from Charles in response to a 5th grade student who had written to him as a class assignment to ask, “What Makes a Good Citizen?’

The student, Joel, still has this letter framed at his home,

and the link to the story is below:

https://www.kqed.org/arts/13852729/charles-schulzs-letter-about-democracy-discovered-50-years-later

Another take on virtue:

Moral beauty can be summarized in one word: virtue. The moral virtues include love, justice/fairness, compassion, wisdom, kindness, honesty, courage, forgiveness, self-sacrifice, etc. It is the enactment of such virtues, the display of them in behavior, which comprises moral beauty. Moral goodness can be noticed through cool cognition, but moral beauty is perceived by a warm heart. Noticing moral goodness may not motivate a human toward prosocial action; but the perception of moral beauty is highly motivating and often leads to prosocial and altruistic behavior. Engagement with moral beauty is the cause of many self-transcendent emotions, but in particular it is cause of the moral emotion of elevation.

-Rhett Diessner, Encyclopedia of Heroism Studies

image credit: Charles Schulz, American Cartoonist/Author, Peanuts 

 

Soup’s On!

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january cocoon.

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tempting.

 

‘the secret joys of living are not found by rushing from point A to point B,

but by slowing down and inventing some imaginary letters along the way.’

– douglas pagels

 

 

 

image credit: tom gauld

 

a series of choices.

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i recently wrote a post about

my dear friend and author, breeda kelly miller

who researched, wrote a play, performed, and presented

her family’s heritage story:

https://ididnthavemyglasseson.com/?s=kelly

she continues to perform the play on stage

had the play aired on pbs,

and presents her story all over the world.

above is the companion book she has written 

which includes more details, background, quotes, photos, and inside jokes

fully rounding out her family’s tale. 

this book was a lovely read

 it was a pleasure to follow along with the story

of the kelly family’s journey

from ireland to canada, and ultimately, the united states

their tale is told through the eyes of a daughter

with stories from the generations before her

sharing the true life eccentric characters and situations 

that carried all of them through life.

it’s a story of love, humor, grace, loss, and acceptance

the photographs make it easy to imagine the people she writes about 

their brave and challenging moments

along with their glories

as they made the best of situations presented to them

gained personal strength, learned as they went

finally finding their place in the world 

a place they came to call home. 

This book takes you through the ebbs and flows of their lives

while sometimes just treading water

but they make it through and inspire us to do the same.

What a beautiful legacy gift Breeda Kelly Miller has created for her family

and for all families

who can all imagine bits of themselves and their own stories in this book. 

every person, every family, every place, every choice, has a story.

looking back and learning about our past

how we came to be who we are, where we came from, bringing us to where we are now

helps us to understand and make sense of our lives.

I hope that you enjoy the Kelly family’s journey as much as I did. 

Sláinte! 

“life, like a poem, is a series of choices.”

Dame Maggie Smith

Mrs. Kelly’s Journey Home is now available for sale at the two sites listed below:

https://breedamiller.com/products/mkjh-book/

https://www.amazon.com/Mrs-Kellys-Journey-Home-American/dp/1956465235

 

beta.

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2025 marks the start of generation beta

The reign of Generation Alpha is over — now introducing: Gen Beta. While we have yet to see this new era take shape, we know that many of these children will be the offspring of millennials and older Gen Zers, living until the 22nd century.

Gen Beta kids, who are expected to become 16% of the global population by 2035, will grow up in a world infused with technology and AI, which could impact everything from their schools to doctor’s offices. They’ll walk the tightrope of forming their identities and developing relationships both online and IRL, but their parents will be well-equipped to help them.

“We predict Generation Beta will embody the balance between hyper-connectivity and personal expression,” wrote author and social researcher Mark McCrindle, who coined the name Gen Beta. “They’ll redefine what it means to belong, blending in-person relationships with global digital communities.”

But tech isn’t the only factor that will impact these quarter-century babies. Click here to learn more in Nice News’ guide to the different generations — from Alpha to Z.

 

‘take the platapus – that is not a finished product.

it is clearly still in beta.’

-stephen colbert

 

 

image credit pinterest 

source credit: julia diddy, nice news

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

reading instruction.

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the cat tower building instructions had me wondering

why do the people in the examples look like friendly ghosts and what are they doing?

i think these pictures meant:

‘warning!

when you open the box of parts

do not throw this instruction manual into the trash

because you will need it

or else you,

(the other ghost, not the throw-away-er,)

might get hurt while building the tower.’

if i interpreted it right

i really needed instructions for the instructions. 

luckily, i did not throw the instructions away

 my daughter built the tower without incident or injury. 

close call.

‘everything in this world, said my father, is big with jest,

and has wit in it, and instruction too, if we can but find it.’

-laurence sterne, irish-born english novelist and humorist

 

goodbye, jimmy.

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‘i will never lie to you.’

-jimmy carter, 39th president of the united states,

nobel prize winner, volunteer, father, husband

champion of the less fortunate and supporter of global humanity

one of my favorite humans

passed away on december 29, 2024 at 100 years old

today, he will be remembered and celebrated

in his beloved hometown of plains, georgia, usa

be like jimmy.

photo credit: bettman archive, novermber 09, 2009

 

it is this cold today.

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 this sign just may stay up for a while.

 

‘one day it was so cold, i almost got married.’

-shelley winters, american actress

 

 

 

 

image credit: pinterest

shanty.

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this is amazing

i had no idea this was a thing

that’s cool that this young musician

knows the old music of the sea

carrying on the traditions

i’m hoping that

voyageurs, sailors, sea captains, pirates, oarsman, and explorers show up. 

 maybe a parrot.

‘just because i can’t sing, doesn’t mean i won’t sing.’

-word porn

learn to fly.

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may this be the year you learn to fly. 

Photographer Hannie Heere was photographing barn owls when she captured an unusual shot of a baby barn owl running across grass. Barn owlets start flapping their wings at seven weeks, making short flights around the nest at eight weeks.

‘we learn to fly not by being fearless, but by the daily practice of courage.’

-sam keen, american author, professor, and philosopher