How to Connect With Humanity When You Feel All Alone

“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.” - Eric Fromm

The recent death of my Auntie Kerry put me in a state of mind that I think we all go through at different times in our lives: the feeling of utter isolation, of complete loneliness.

There are times when we feel that even if we are surrounded by other people in our lives, we are alone. We must go through this difficult journey called life by ourselves, no matter if we’re married or if we have children or close friends. And that’s a very lonesome prospect.

15 Tips for Becoming as Patient as Job

“Patience and fortitude conquer all things.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

In the Old Testament, the story of Job showed a very faithful man whose faith is put to test, and shows an extreme example of perseverance through suffering … but in my mind, whenever I read Job’s story, I am struck by the man’s supreme patience.

While living a very faithful and righteous life, he nevertheless endured one infliction after another without ever cursing God’s name. I think most of us would have lost our patience and become frustrated and angry much earlier in the story.

While Job’s patience is legendary, I believe that even the most impatient of us can learn to be more patient with practice.

Three Truths to Help You Create a Life of Gratitude

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Chris Guillebeau of The Art of Nonconformity.

On a recent trip to Ohrid, Macedonia, I arrived in the middle of the night after a six-hour bus ride through Albania. It was my first time in Macedonia, so I didn’t know my way around very well. I carried my bags through the small town, finally locating my guesthouse after a half-hour trek.

By that point, it was 3:30 a.m. and I hadn’t slept at all. Since my reservation was for the next day, the guesthouse let me store my bags, but I couldn’t check in until much later that morning. Exhausted and disoriented, I stumbled back outside and walked around some more.

Notes on Fatherhood

Today is Father’s Day here on Guam, and my dad is lying on my couch taking a nap. My half-siblings are all over my house playing with my six kids (they’re all around the same age), the sounds of laughter and guitar and computer games floating all over the place. My two beautiful sisters, Katrina and Ana, are on the way over with their kids.

My two-year-old daughter is on the floor next to me, playing some game I cannot fathom, laughing up at me and talking a storm (I can only understand about half her words).

It’s days like these when the joys of being a father all kind of come together.

25 Ways to Help a Fellow Human Being Today

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” - Dalai Lama

Too often the trend in our society is for people to be separated from either other, to be cut off from the great mass of humanity, and in doing so to be dehumanized a little bit more with each step.

Cars have taken us off the streets, where we used to greet each other and stop to chat. Cubicles have taken away a bit of the humanity in working, as have factories and even computers to some extent. Television has planted us firmly in our living rooms, instead of out with other people. Even movie theaters, where many people get together, cut us off from true conversation because we’re staring at a big screen.