A Beacon of Light

“We cannot live only for ourselves.” Herman Melville Quite regularly, as I walk around the condominium complex where Kathy and I have lived for almost forty years, I reflect on the wisdom of a Chinese proverb: “A good neighbor is a priceless treasure.” We have been blessed with an abundance of good neighbors. Sylvia Mathews Burwell, a…

“When small  businesses succeed,  communities thrive.”  Duane Fladland Kathy and I have lived in our West San José home for almost 40 years. The closest major intersection to our home is Saratoga Avenue & Williams Road. When we moved into our home in October 1986, the intersection was home to a variety of restaurants: Wendy’s,…

“Okay, you guys. Pair up in threes.” Yogi Berra The first professional baseball game I attended was in the mid-1960s. The San Francisco Giants hosted the Cincinnati Reds at Candlestick Park. The Giants had played in the World Series in 1962. Sadly, they didn’t actually win a World Series in San Francisco until 2010. Then they achieved…

“If you don’t like  something, change it.  If you can’t change it,  change your attitude.”Maya Angelou When I moved from my childhood home in San Francisco to San José to attend college in 1972, traffic in the Santa Clara Valley was not an issue. Construction of highway 280, from Highway 17 through downtown San José…

“All year round, there’s always something going on in downtown Campbell.”downtowncampbell.com As I wandered down East Campbell Avenue in downtown Campbell, California this morning, a strange thought crossed my mind: Retirement is not over-rated! It was about 10:45 on a Thursday morning. There was a time when I would have been in the middle of teaching my…

“Within you there is  a stillness and a  sanctuary to which  you can retreat  at any time.” Hermann Hesse For almost twenty years, I’ve been writing articles for my blogs — first for Attitude of Gratitude (approximately 2,000 posts), then for A Beacon of Light (more than 600 posts, so far). Every now and then, in…

In the midst of chaos, it is possible to find peace. Serenity is not freedom from the storm. It is peace amid the storm. Nothing can disturb your peace of mind unless you allow it to. Inner peace is a proactive choice, often requiring conscious thought management. Sometimes, the most productive thing we can do…