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We are all the same size inside
We are all more
Celebrate small moments
Thankful for people
Children do grow up
No power tonight
The leaf is proud


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"The things we want are really the times we share."

"The most important things we bring with us are within us."

"If I had only one thing I would take a smile over an iPod."

~ Rob Hueniken

From the category archives:

Favorite Things

Thumbnail image for A better life in Barbie-land

A better life in Barbie-land

December 27, 2009

One of the best-selling toys our culture has produced is the ever-pretty Barbie, by Mattel.  As the father of a former young daughter, I have experienced first-hand the playing, dressing and accessories that Barbie brings to our world. It was a positive time of fun as well as social exploration and learning. When my daughter became a teenager, I remember when she decided to remove her Barbies from her bedroom, and it was a strong and sad moment for me. I felt that I should have spent more time sitting together with her, combing Barbie’s hair and play-acting adventures in [...]

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Thumbnail image for No way to play a guitar

No way to play a guitar

December 17, 2009

I love music, and I always have. It makes my body move and my spirit soar. I have many favorite songs and passages, and I can listen to them repeatedly — thrilling to the skill and nuance of the performers. My brain plays songs I’ve heard, like a tape recorder in my head.  But sometimes it plays songs I’ve never heard, and those are the hard ones for me to hear, without the skills to make them real. When I was in first year university I lived in a residence with many other young men. It was a mix of [...]

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A Poem for Raking Leaves

November 12, 2009

My Twitter friend, Mike Todd (miketodd07), was out raking today, and sent this tweet: Raking leaves in the sunshine, listening to Owl City on the iPod, thinking about poetry. So I wrote this poem on Twitter: Leaves & sun, together, sounding crisp & smelling soft, like earth and summer memories, fallen but still remaining and reminding. [Return to the home page of MakingMoreOfToday.com.]

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Thumbnail image for The music we love

The music we love

October 29, 2009

Rooted in the deepest parts of our brains is our love of music. Starting with our body’s natural rhythms and love of patterns, music winds its way through us, to us, and from us. Everyone loves music — some type of music. And everyone makes music, whether it is a skilled performance on an instrument, singing a bit of a song, or tapping our feet. Music is the natural joy language of all humans. Mitch Miller, loving the music We each have a personal musical path through our lives, woven by deliberate forces such as radio and TV, shared experiences [...]

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Thumbnail image for My father’s hammer

My father’s hammer

October 19, 2009

Stepping into my father’s workshop always takes me back in time. Not only are my parents collectors of memorabilia, but they continue to make good use of the things they already have. So when I look around my father’s garage I see tools that have existed since I was a boy, including a vice, a band saw, and various ancient screw drivers. While my mother prepared our lunch, my father showed me his latest project – to add a second door to the front hallway, to keep the cold air out, but with a window to keep the light flowing [...]

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Air is thick but sensitive

September 19, 2009

One of the biggest things we never see is all around us — the air. We know it’s there but we don’t think about it much unless it smells wonderful (like dinner) or smells terrible (like when a farmer is spreading manure on his fields). While air usually looks clear it is much more than thin nothingness. It supplies oxygen for billions of people and for even more animals. It pushes windmills, holds up birds and even holds up airplanes. Air is thick! While not a stunt to repeat, this guy is being kept upright by a very strong updraft. [...]

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Thumbnail image for Smells like home spirit

Smells like home spirit

September 14, 2009

There is no place like home, and no smell as inviting and soothing as a home-cooked meal. My great fortune is having a Mom who shows love through her cooking, and she loves us a lot! This past weekend my wonderfully extended family made the drive to visit my Mom and Dad — an experience that I always look forward to. Sure, there might be a question or two I’d rather not think about, or a medical status that I wish were different, but smoothing it all into a loving and joyful haze is the smell of my Mom’s cooking. [...]

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Trees only get one channel

September 6, 2009

When we get out into nature one thing becomes clear: nature is a fantastic experience, in all its variations. Nature is reality TV in its purest form. A friend and I went walking yesterday in a hill-top park that holds our city’s water supply, suitably called Reservoir Park. It is an inspiring combination of urban function and natural environment. The sun was strong and the late-summer leaves were deep green and working hard.  There was lichen on the tree trunks — the bumpy, mottled blue-green combination of algae and fungus — working hard in its own slow way to pull [...]

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Maybe Smarties maybe balloons

September 5, 2009

Things that look alike can turn out to be very different as we get closer to them, and get to know them. I have always been a fan of Smarties, the colorful candy-coated chocolate treats (Wikipedia). Round but also flat, small but easy to grab — they are fun to eat and easy to share.  Their cousins, M&Ms, share the same features. I can even thank Smarties for teaching me the idea of sorting: “Here are the red ones, and here are the blue ones.” Smarties usually come in a box, which even kids can open, and make a great [...]

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Cookies make us kids again

September 2, 2009

There is one thing that can bring people of all ages and cultures to a shared smile: cookies. Our local deli-restaurant is a gathering place on Sundays, where family and friends get together. Everyone gets to order their own meal from the various counters so we tend to grab our trays and spread out when we first arrive. On our recent visit I spied a glowing display case of beautiful cookies, and I pointed it out to my young-adult children. They both dutifully looked over at what Dad was pointing to, and then they stopped talking. Transfixed by the colors [...]

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