Stuart Overton Parsons

What's in a picture? More than a thousand words and certainly a life well lived.

While I didn't know Stuart Parsons as well as I should have, I felt his vibrancy when he entered a room and I knew he was a fine man because of the beautiful women who surrounded him in this life--his Harriet, his Cindy, his Carol and his Pamela! Yes, his body tired before his spirit was ready to follow, but what a wonderful gift it was that he left his spirt bright at his departure. That brightness will guide all of us who trail behind him and will instruct those nearest and dearest to him in the lessons of loving from a distance. Afterall, he was a brilliant instructor and now we will just have to listen differently to hear what he has yet to say.

Life in a New Year

Life isn't perfect. There are zigs and zags and then a cut off where there was thought to be a road.

How do we make sense of anything? "Keep your eye on the ball"-- and then the ball veers off to the left while you are looking to the right. What to do? Reset!

Our minds and hearts are required to expand and reset constantly. If there were only one way to see anything, life would be quite simple. And we know that while in moments life may appear simple, it is simply not easy! We are summoned to be courageous. Even courage sounds easy until we are put to the test.

There have been so many times in life that I have thought I escaped a "test"--there has even been a touch of arrogance in that thought. As I grow older, I realize that there is great danger in this arrogance--in the thought that I have escaped what others have had to endure. Maturing is actually escaping this arrogance and moving toward empathy and compassion.

While I plan to dream big and hope high in the new year, I also want to remain aware of the fact that anything can happen to anyone at anytime. There is such humility in that thought. My wish for the new year is to stay steady and in a moment of unsteadiness--be willing to reset.

And while there are the zigs and the zags that make visibility ahead more difficult, I always want to remember that it is precisely those same zigs and zags that make the adventure of life worth living.

Happy New Year!