Phillip Berry | Orient Yourself

Our fifth grandchild was born yesterday. He came to the world in the usual way, but there were planes to catch, and bills to pay….forgive me while I channel some melancholic Harry Chapin. We met our third grandson, Arthur Thomas, in the aftermath of a robust labor. Our son and daughter-in-law were in that blissful […]

Last week, I wrote of patience and the seasons we find ourselves in. This week, I’ll continue that thread by exploring some of the side effects of impatience and the feelings it can foster. Bad Days Do you ever have “bad” days? Of course you do, we all do. I had one the other day. […]

Patience is power. Patience is not an absence of action; rather it is “timing,” it waits on the right time to act, for the right principles, and in the right way. Fulton Sheen A Quest for Action We spend so much time in action. As leaders, managers, and working professionals, we are measured in what […]

What constitutes a wonderful life? I find myself contemplating this question today as I think of my friend who was put into hospice care yesterday. The wonder of life takes on new dimensions when considered against the sharp edge of life’s end. Of course, hospice is not the end, but it is acknowledgement of the […]

This day we share, in the warmth of our home, Together we pray, as our hearts lightly roam; Toward the grateful, the plenty, the smells, and the cheer, Across the miles we’ve walked, making our way here. Beyond the sullen, the empty, the broken, the lost; Traveled we have, knowing sacrifice and cost. For the […]

Focus on everything better todayAll that I needed I never could sayHold on to people, they’re slipping awayHold on to this while it’s slipping away Moby, Slipping Away The cold has arrived and, with it, that quiet introspection which always seems to accompany the gray moodiness of a blustery winter storm. For those who appreciate […]

Shilo, when I was youngI used to call your nameWhen no one else would comeShilo, you always cameAnd we’d play Neil Diamond Toward the end of a recent breakfast meeting, I glanced at my phone and noticed numerous missed calls and texts from Sally. Uh oh. It seems that her morning had been interrupted by […]

The home is not the one tame place in a world of adventure; it is the one wild place in a world of rules and set tasks. G.K. Chesterton A few weeks ago, Sally shared the quotation above with me. Before I was even able to contemplate the wisdom of Chesterton’s thinking, I was struck […]

One of the beautifully profound aspects of the arrival of a new baby, is the event’s effect on baby’s siblings. Now adjusting to the myriad impacts of grandchild number four, I’ve been blessed to watch the evolving reactions of her brothers and sister. The natural fascination of children comes fully alive when intersecting with the […]

The search for a scapegoat is the easiest of all hunting expeditions. Dwight D. Eisenhower “Come on, Pop, read us a book!” said Cooper as he patted the seat beside him on the couch. There are some voices, requests, and moments to which there is no denial. Taking the seat offered, I was immediately compressed […]