We are very good at noticing differences. Age. Religion. Politics. Education. Where someone lives. How they speak. What they believe. We form impressions of one another quickly, often before a real conversation has even begun. Some of those differences matter. They shape our histories, our values, and
A reader recently wrote to Spiritual Seniors about loneliness. She is 71 years old and has been married for 53 years. She raised a family, helped her husband with his businesses, worked part-time, and volunteered. Yet she finds herself in what she calls a lonely
Mary Oliver liked to walk the same path every day. She lived for decades in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where woods, dunes, marshes and beaches gave her plenty of places to walk. Yet Oliver often chose the same path. “My own nature is to like to walk the same
On this day, August 9, 1854, Henry David Thoreau published Walden: Life in the Woods, a book that is still inviting readers into the same conversation 172 years later. Thousands of books have come and gone since then. Some were bestsellers in their day and are
"The ache for home lives in all of us." — Maya Angelou People use the word home in ways that have nothing to do with an address. Someone returns to the town where they grew up and understands, perhaps for the first time, what Thomas Wolfe meant by
Doing the right thing is easy when someone is watching. The real test comes when no one is. Suppose your town announced an unusual experiment. For the next twenty-four hours, every traffic law would remain on the books, but none would be enforced. Red lights would still
“The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” — Carl Gustav Jung It is an unusual way to think about relationships. We often measure relationships by time. How many years have we known someone? How
A few days ago, thousands of people gathered in Chicago for the official opening of the Obama Presidential Center. Organizers described it as a celebration of democracy, culture, service, and hope—a place intended not simply to preserve history, but to encourage people to participate in
The Burden We Share A reader recently responded to one of our reflections with a deeply honest observation. One of the privileges of this publication is the opportunity to learn from readers. We publish articles and reflections, but often the conversation continues in the comments. Occasionally, someone
“The best balm for the soul is friendship.” — Eddie Jaku Imagine losing your wallet. Not a hypothetical wallet. Your wallet. Driver’s license, credit cards, perhaps a little cash, and all the small things that accumulate over time. How likely do you think it is that a stranger