I love me

I just returned from a scholarship committee meeting. I read all the essays, peeked over all the transcripts, and tried to figure out which letters of recommendation were genuine. Of the many outstanding applicants only one caught my attention and my heart with their answer to the stock question “What is your planned area of study?” On the short blank next to the question they wrote General Studies. Other committee members scoffed at this applicant’s lack of ambition. I defended the student. Why is it so important to know what you want to do with the rest of your life when you’re 17-18 years old? How did we become so judgmental to call a general studies student “unfocused and lazy?” I found the student to be the only one in the bunch with a realistic and radical goal. After reading the essay it was obvious what this young person wants to do with their life: Change the World.

I have often wondered how best to change the world. I am only me. What can I possibly do to change the world? After a few years of thought and collaboration I have decided the best way to change the world is to be the best person that I can possibly be. But that just didn’t seem like enough. While I’m far from being the best I can be, I know that the world needs more than “just me” could offer. As a fellow blog buddy recently shared, Random Acts of Kindness serve as encouragement that there is still some love out there. There are some things we can do to make this planet a more loving place. In fact, I think it comes down to two simple principles:

1. Love yourself more deeply.
2. See yourself in the world around you.

We all have room to deepen our self-love. It’s always a work in progress. But if we deeply love ourselves, and see ourselves in the world around us, then it’s inevitable that we’ll treat the world a little bit nicer.

I love me. I see the world as an extension of me. Therefore, I love the world.

What are the implications of loving yourself and seeing yourself in the world? Recycling. Charity. Equality. Service. Compassion. Conservation. Respect. And gratitude, just to name a few.

What do you think? What can each of us do to make the world a more loving place?

Just keep 'em coming

Hello. My name is Andrew, and I'm a coffee snob. While I will never turn down a cup of coffee I will on occasion turn up my nose to one. When I was in college I was enjoying a small dinner gathering at a professor's house. I was in the kitchen when i saw it. There sitting on the counter was the most beautiful and stunning small kitchen appliance I had ever seen. It had a commanding appearance with it's grey body and water reservoir with blue cast lights. It was a coffee maker, but not just any coffee maker. I was looking at the Keurig Home Brewing System. I knew I had to have one.

It took a while, but last October I purchased my very own Keurig Platinum Brewer. Heaven I tell you. The specially designed coffee is perfectly brewed. My personal taste is for the Newman's Own organic blend. But after only a few weeks of normal use I started to experience a malfunction in the brewer that caused it to not function properly. I called the company and they sent out a replacement no questions asked. This time the brewer only lasted a few days! So I once again called the company. They sent my third brewer and four boxes of my favorite coffee. And yet it happened again.

If it didn't make the best cup of coffee I've ever had I would have given up. For the last week or so my fourth brewer started acting up. Today was the worst day. I called. My fifth Keurig platinum brewer is on the way. The representative I spoke with on the phone today said, "If its any consolation to you Mr. Flynn, your customer profile states that you are very friendly and easy to talk to." After saying that she told me she would double my coffee order free of charge.

See....it pays to be nice. You are all welcome to come over for coffee anytime.

Eat to Live!

A few months ago I did something that I never thought I would do. In March of this year I went from making fun of friends and co-workers and their odd obsession to being one of the fanatical. I read a book that has completely changed my life. Yes, I know that I have an addictive personality and that it has never taken much for me to jump on the band wagon, and I know that some of my friends are making fun of me now as much as I made fun of my co-workers. But I can’t help it. I need to share this with you. The book is titled “Eat to Live.”

I work for a small and locally owned/operated service business. There are not many employees and we all spend a considerable amount of time together. So when some of my co-workers and employers started “going on a diet” it was hard to dismiss. The first noticeable difference was the lack of donuts during our ritual coffee time in the mornings. Then they started to skip the occasional group lunch that is sometimes a part of our job. Finally the truth came out, and the details of the Eat to Live lifestyle came into conversation. Some of my co-workers thought it was silly, a waste of time, and un-American. I didn’t say anything. I didn’t say anything because I was seeing positive results and incredible changes in the Eat to Live co-workers. I was impressed to say the least.

I quietly purchased and read the book over a weekend. After reading it I purged my kitchen of food and staples that I had been surviving on for years, and began to live a healthy lifestyle. I tried to not mention what I was doing as to not be criticized as a “diet snob” by my other co-workers. But it is hard to hide. Before long I was having friends ask me questions like, “Are you on a diet or something?” or “Are you trying to lose weight?” My answer was always….no. I’m not on a diet. I have drastically changed the way I eat. For the first time in my life I actually feel healthy.

Did I need to lose weight? Yes. I’ve been over weight for most of my life. I always said I would try to eat healthy and exercise more, but it never happened. I remember when I knew I had to do something about my weight. One of my best friends is, well, drastically small. He and I were talking about how he can gain weight. Over the last two years this friend has grown from the short scrawny boy to the tall and significantly skinny young man. In an effort to gain mass he started a diet (under the supervision of a dietitian) and exercise plan that would no doubt do the job. I decided that if his diet and exercise plan could help him gain body mass, it would also help me lose body mass.

I was too out of shape….no….I was too fat for the exercise plan. P90X. When I couldn’t get through the first program without stopping I knew that I had to do something. So I read the book, lived the lifestyle, and quickly changed from the average American eater into something that some of us at the office call “Citizens of Nutritional Excellence.” In the past month I have had several people ask me how I lost the weight. One lady even gave me a business card for a counselor to help me with my eating disorder.

Honestly, I didn’t notice the change. But why would I? I see me every day. It is the comments from people who don’t see me on a regular basis that have confirmed that I have indeed lost weight. (You see, I don’t own a scale. My only gauge has been the fit of my clothing. By the way…nothing fits anymore.) A few people have even told me that I didn't need to lose any more. Well, I have purchased a scale, and yes I do need to loose more. Besides, these people do not see me naked.

I want you to read the book. Not to lose weight. I want you to become as healthy as you can possibly be. I am eating foods that I have never eaten before. I am eating foods that I used to push to the side of my plate. I have never been happier with my body…and I know that the best is yet to come. Dr. Joel Fuhrman changed my life, and he can change yours too! If you don't want to shell out the few dollars for a used copy from amazon let me know. I'll buy it for you.

Independence from...

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to recognize the intrinsic connection that we all share, the need to spew our toxic malice all but fades away.

My right hand does not fight with my left hand. My toes don’t struggle with each other for supremacy, and neither do my arms conspire against my legs. My body is at peace with itself. Yet the body of human kind is engaged in conflict that is the metaphorical equivalent. And at an even larger level, we fail to see that the atrocities that we commit against this planet are atrocities that we commit against ourselves.

In the United States, the July 4th holiday commemorates our declaration of independence from Great Britain. This year, I’m celebrating the holiday by declaring my Independence from cruelty, unkindness, and the consequences of a closed mind.

I recognize the insanity in so much of our conflict. And though I am unable to pacify some of the larger world conflicts, I can bring awareness and attention to the conflicts in my own life. I will choose my reactions carefully, and recognize the same light that we all share. Instead of reacting with hate, violence or anger, I will choose love, compassion and understanding. And in this way, I will contribute to the evolution of the consciousness of mankind and the world peace that we all so deeply desire.

Patrick Henry was a great American patriot. But it is important to remember that this founding father was considered to be the most radical advocate of our Revolution. Radical, in this historical context, refers to those who were seeking much needed social and political reform. So, to quote a man whom I have learned was much more than a founding father, and to whom I dedicated a significant portion of my life I say, “Give ME liberty, or give me death.”