Wisdom

“Wise men hear and see
As little children do.”
-Lao-Tzu (6th cent. B.C.)

Children see things with an open mind and an open heart. Wisdom is not being childish, but rather it is being child-like in our curiosity and wonder. It allowing possibilities to present themselves in front of us. It is marveling at the grandeur of life.
-Lissa Coffey

Words

“The more perfect the understanding between men, the less need of words.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Have you ever noticed how, with a really good friend, the silences are completely comfortable? It’s as if you don’t need words to communicate. There’s an unspoken communication that allows space to just be. Sometimes words aren’t enough to express how we feel. If you’ve ever said “I love you more than words can say” you know how that feels! You can write songs and poems and letters, and somehow it just can’t quite sum up that feeling you get when looking into that person’s eyes, completely silent.
-Lissa Coffey

Work

"I believe in hard work. It keeps the wrinkles out of the mind and the spirit."
-Helena Rubinstein

"To find joy in work is to discover the fountain of youth."
-Pearl S. Buck

Helena Rubinstein is the famous cosmetics mogul. She is a great example of a businesswoman ahead of her time! It is obvious that she enjoyed her profession and was very successful with it. It is true that doing work that we love helps to keep us young and feeling good about ourselves.
-Lissa Coffey

Wisdom

“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Since this newsletter is called WisdomNews I thought we’d start off the new year talking about wisdom. Wisdom goes beyond knowledge. We often hear wisdom associated with sages, people who seem to know and understand those things that sometimes have no explanation. Maybe it is recognizing that connection between all things that makes everything miraculous. Wisdom is attainable, all the wisdom of the universe is at hand right now.
-Lissa Coffey

Wisdom

“ The first step in the acquisition of wisdom is silence, the second listening, the third memory, the fourth practice, the fifth teaching others.”
-Solomen Ibn Gabirol (A.D. 1021? – 1069?)

Hard to argue with that, huh? Silence, meditation, time with nature, self-reflection… all of these things lead us to wisdom. Have we taken that first step? Do we listen? Do we remember? Do we practice? Do we teach others? We all know what we must do, yet how often do we really do it? We get so distracted by our daily activities that we forget how important it is to just sit down and be quiet for a change! Yes, it is important – wisdom is important! Wisdom is necessary to lead the kind of lives that we say we want to lead. The first step is silence.
-Lissa Coffey

Wisdom

“It is easier to be wise for others than for oneself.”
-La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680)

This is so true! Don’t we all give better advice than we take from ourselves? Because we can look at someone else’s problems objectively, and we are so caught up in our own emotions that it’s hard to step back and look at our own problems with the same wisdom. But it is possible! As we learn and grow and spend more time in silence, we make better decisions, we become more wise.
-Lissa Coffey

Wisdom

“Wisdom cannot be pass’d from one having it to another not having it.
Wisdom is of the soul, is not susceptible of proof, is its own proof.”
-Walt Whitman (1819-1892)

This is another example of the more that you give, the more that you have. One of the best ways to learn is by teaching! Wisdom is not something that can necessarily be measured, but it can be felt, and it can be shared.
-Lissa Coffey

Words

“ You can stroke people with words.”
-F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940)

What would we do without language? This is how we communicate. Words by themselves are so innocuous, but when we put them together, combine them together in such a way, they can be bitterly poisonous, or powerfully healing. Words can carry with them so much meaning. Through words we can express tenderness, and compassion.
-Lissa Coffey

Words

“ Words make another place, a place to escape to with your spirit alone.”
-Robert MacNeil (1931 - )

We all know what it feels like to get lost in a really good book. What magic there is in that! What a gift that is available to us, to be able to share our thoughts and feelings and experiences with each other – to express our concerns and joys. All this is possible because we have the words to do it. It doesn’t matter if it is the spoken word, or the written word – written on a computer or by hand – in block letters, a smothe cursive, or even Braille! Words help us to learn more about ourselves, and about each other.
-Lissa Coffey

Words

“ You may choose your word like a connoisseur,
And polish it up with art,
But the word that sways, and stirs, and stays,
Is the word that comes from the heart.”
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1906

When we communicate, we want to choose our words carefully to be sure that we are completely understood. And yet, when we want to express our feelings, sometimes it helps to just let those feelings flow, to think with our hearts more than with our heads. The words that come from our hearts are so true and real that they can’t help but have an effect on anyone who hears them.
-Lissa Coffey

Words

“ Words and eggs must be handled with care.
Once broken they are impossible
things to repair.”
-Anne Sexton, 1975

Another way of making a promise is by saying: “I give you my word.” When you do what you say you are going to do, you are being true to you word – you are being honest, and showing integrity. It is important for people to be able to trust each other. And when once a word is broken, the trust that comes with it is broken, too. We can gain trust, and show that we are trustworthy, by being true to our word.
-Lissa Coffey

Work

"The man [or woman!] who does not work for the love of work but only for money is not likely to make money nor to find much fun in life."
-Charles M. Schwab

That's quite some advice from one of the top businessmen in American history! Yet how many of us really take this to heart? I've heard so many times from people who say that they are working just for the money and that what they REALLY want to do is something else entirely. This isn't productive. So our choice is to either find a way to love the work that we are at least temporarily required to do, OR find a way to make money doing what it is that we love to do. Both of these are valid options. Work can be a ministry. No matter where you are or what you're doing, there are people you can reach, people you can help. And we also know that when you truly love what you are doing, nothing can stop you from doing it!
-Lissa Coffey

Work

"He [or she!] who would really benefit mankind [humankind] must reach them through their work."
-Henry Ford

Another famous American businessman who literally changed the world! Henry Ford knew how important it is for us to help each other. And the amazing thing is that whenever we help anyone else, we are also helping ourselves. We're helping ourselves to learn and grow and reach out to connect with others. The more we all do this, the better off we all will be!
-Lissa Coffey

Work

"If a man [or woman!] love the labor of any trade, apart from any question of success or fame, the Gods have called him. [or her]"
-Robert Louis Stevenson

"Dharma" is a sanskrit word that loosely translated means "purpose in life." To have found our dharma is indeed a beautiful thing! Dharma can be more than one thing, and dharma can also change and evolve as we do. But basically, we know that we're in our dharma when we love what we do, when we feel fulfilled, when we are unaware of the time that goes by when we are working. True dharma is work that we enjoy and that also helps people in some way.
-Lissa Coffey

Work

"All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work. Work is not a curse; it is the prerogative of intelligence... the measure of civilization."
-Calvin Coolidge

It's great to plan, to pay attention, to have intention, to dream, wish, and visualize. Yet there comes a time when we must take action! Work is how things get done. Because we live on this human plane, work is how we learn and grow. Whether it is by studying or through our experiences, our activities take us to new places mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
-Lissa Coffey