SOAPBOX of the week: back-handed band-aid therapy

Posted on January 26, 2009 by admin

“If you give a man a fish, he will have a single meal. If you teach him how to fish, he will eat all his life.” – Kwan-Tzu, philosopher

Almost seems like a catch 22 …choose to swiftly take care of a situation for immediate relief or take the time to invest more energy, effort and resources to stave off the same darn predicament from resurfacing again and again. Quick fixes always appear more attractive –because they’re easier and deliver the instant gratification we all presumably seek. Ah, but that which you “nip in the bud” with band-aid therapy usually comes back to bite you in the end, with a bigger challenge. The project of creating a teacher out of a student is wisdom in the making. And whether you’re the giver or the receiver, the benefits of the experience will linger to sustain you indefinitely.

Copyright 2000-2009 by Kimberlie Dykeman
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: new year, old wisdom

Posted on December 29, 2008 by admin

“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” – John Quincy Adams, US President

Gooooooood morning, race fans! How’s the ride so far? Let me guess. As soon as the second hand strikes and Dick Clark alarmclocks the world onto a clean slate, you set to full throttle and take off like a mid-life-crisis man in a new Corvette.

With heart pounding and champagne in your eyes, you decide that you will take the wheel and make things go your way this year, come hell or high water. Righting the wrongs. Shaking the systems. Cutting the fat. Testing the waters. Revolutionizing the resolutions. Painting a free-wheeling, forward thinking phantasmagoric mural of all that is, was, and ever will be the real future perfect you deserve. All in the name of an unyielding loyalty to the natural selection of self, at least until about mid-February.

I must confess, I too burn a rouge of rubber just as eagerly each year. Even ponder the thought that the heavens will magically open up and confetti my little field of dreams with all the blessing and adornments that I’ve kept cooped up for the past twelve months. Sound familiar? Well, I have both good and bad news for you.

Bad news first: A supercharged vehicle won’t get you through the roadblocks any faster. No matter how much shifting and strategizing you perform, the course will dictate your life’s journey. Not the other way around. And if you’re thinking you can brainstorm your agenda-ed TripTik into an immediate reality, think again. Enough with the red line, race fans, you’re libel to blow the whole engine again.

Now for the good news: You’ve already done the work. You’ve got the ride, the route, and reason for success in all pillars of your future. So, recline with the resonating truth that patience remains the worthwhile virtue that will never fail to fuel your expedition. Coast over your holographic horizon to discover another bountifully balanced year ahead, in body, mind, and spirit. And embrace the magical open road.

Copyright 2000-2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman.
This vignette is an excerpt from Pure Soapbox… a cleansing jolt of perspective, motivation, and humor (July 2008)
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: permission to pause

Posted on December 22, 2008 by admin

“All the animals excepting man know that the principal business of life is to enjoy it.” – Samuel Butler, author

Ain’t that the truth! I’ll wager that you scarcely remember the last time you cashed in a handful of your jillion back-logged sick days for some blissful R&R. And, when you hark back to those retreats filled with unadulterated fun, you wonder, under furled brow, why you needed to convince yourself that you’d “earned” this. What are you saving up for anyway? Perhaps you’ve forgotten the definition of the pleasurably promising word: Va·ca·tion. If you find you qualify as one these vocab-deficient, self-neglecting workaholics, there’s no need to identify yourself…just get off your can and vacate the premises! Be it for a week or a wink, allow yourself the time off and time out. Because you deserve it! Don’t merely survive. Thrive! We are all in the business of living first. And business is goood!

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: the demise of excess and avarice

Posted on December 15, 2008 by admin

“Society drives people crazy with lust and calls it advertising.” – John Lahr, drama critic

Supply and demand used to be so simple. A work-in-progress of balancing out the have’s and have-not’s, meeting needs while doing “good business.” What you see is what you get. And it made calm sense. Now, the offerings are fantastical in design, superfluous in number and sizzled as solutions for immediate happiness. We’ve grown to not only expect more of such uncategorized stuff, we feel entitled to bigger, better, faster as well! Greed overshadows need, and guilt counters with acceptable addictions. It’s another chicken or egg parable, because amidst the overpromising big print, it’s still your choice to suffer the small print which taketh away. Choose to sedate the urges for more, more, more, for too much will always be too much, folks.

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: honoring the bountiful big picture

Posted on December 8, 2008 by admin

“We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell, educator and writer

The Big Picture. What does yours include: Early retirement? World travel? Think you’re destined to wear the title of CEO, proud parent, famous author, or couple of the year? Is everything going as planned? Fifty bucks says…no. Be honest: you’ve had a few changes of plans. A few screw-ups. Folks, WE ALL HAVE! But, some of you label these twists as ultimate justification for not becoming the man or woman you were supposed to. And without knowing it you set a path for “hell or high water”, blind to the countless other glorious options right at your feet! Finding opportunity in adversity isn’t an opportunity –it’s a necessity. Plan A or BUST is certain to be the latter…especially when life has so much more to offer that any of your plans ever could.

Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.

A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: the place is not the point

Posted on December 1, 2008 by admin

“Life’s a journey, not a destination.” – Steven Tyler, rock-n-roller

Hey there, rock and rollers! Here’s a hidden treasure from one of the disciples of lyric and noise With a flick of his mic and a howl from his chops, he time enlightens us with but a few words. Deceivingly simple at first glance, you must step back to appreciate its expanding profundity and note how it levels the playing field for every age, ethnicity, and walk of life. With commonsensical clarity it serves to remind us that we are all on the same map. It’s called Earth, folks. You’ve already reached your destination. Now it’s up to you to create the experience. So, enjoy the route, the scenery, the pit stops, the landmarks, heck, even the 7-11s along the way! Take it all in before someone folds it all up.