CJ and his friend Steven cast drop their lines right off of this dock. They drive 20 minutes to fish here regularly and I met them while working with the Tennessee Aquarium. He is happy to talk to me and tells me about the types of fish here and asks where I a...
Cultures of Connection
In the book “Together” the US Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy presents research on the cause and impact of loneliness and stories of individuals and communities that are making a difference by building connections and stronger communities. From t...
What’s Your Favourite Walking Route?
“What’s your favourite walking route?” was one of a dozen questions on the spinning wheel at a community BBQ. Neighbours who attended the event could spin the wheel and draw or write a response to their question. The questions were designed t...
Wow!!
In the book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life by Dacher Keltner; he defines awe as being in the presence of something so vast that it transcends your current understanding of the world. I think of the “wow” ...
Questions About Gifts
Everyone has gifts, usually many gifts. These are the things we like to do, care about, know or pay attention to and are important to us. Frequently these are easily discovered. Other times it takes time, conversation and a relationship before more gifts are v...
What Do You See?
One idea to get to know a neighborhood better is to be a tourist for an afternoon and see what unexpected treasures you discover. In Oshkosh, Wisconsin I was intrigued by the old architecture of the buildings on Main Street. One building had the most unusual a...
I Saw A Platypus
” I saw a platypus on my way to school” were the words as the smiling child walked on past the animal farm on her way to school. I created the farm with little plastic animals several months ago as an experiment to see what would happen. I have got...
Immersed In a Culture of Connection
I was staying at a airbnb in a small town just outside of Cincinnati. Work commitments kept me busy most of the day during the week and during the evening I would walk or bike around town taking in the sights. Early one morning I walked up to a coffee shop and...
Birds Of A Feather
I stopped my bike on the bridge to look at the ducks gathered on the ice and saw a man walking through the woods on the other side of the bridge. As he made his way up to the bridge I noticed he had two cameras hanging on straps around his neck, both with larg...
There’s An Abundance
“Good morning Pontiac!” was the enthusiastic greeting by Rick to one of the guys waiting in line at the neighbourhood soup kitchen. The place is sort of a breakfast soup kitchen that does in fact serve soup and coffee to anyone during the morning h...