Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Gratitude”
Please accept my heartfelt wish that you and all those you love have a very happy and rewarding Thanksgiving holiday and please accept my sincere gratitude to you. Your willingness to read and consider my thoughts and occasionally share them with others is a gift of immeasurable value. I treasure this opportunity to be part of your life in this …
Dear Reader and Friend, I hope it’s not presumptuous to address you as “Friend,” but I’ve shared with you so many of my deepest thoughts — including my recent sense of loss and uncertainty when the radio station KNX in Los Angeles cancelled the Character Counts broadcasts — that I feel a genuine intimacy with you. I’ll turn 69 in a …
For some, Thanksgiving is the beginning of a holiday season filled with joy and happiness at the prospect of spending time with family. For others, it’s a sadder time blemished by bad memories or dread. Some people see their lives filled with abundant blessings and find thankfulness easy and natural; others are so pre-occupied with tending to past wounds or …
In the midst of living life; in the midst of chaos; in the midst of endless lists of to-do’s and people to take care of, and little pieces of you going outward, I challenge you to shift your subconscious, to shift your attitude, and find three things to feel grateful for. Think about it and breathe it in and say: …
Thanksgiving is my holiday. I have nine brothers and sisters and a tradition evolved where one of us regularly hosts the family gathering at specific major holidays. Ever since my dad passed away, I became the impresario of our Thanksgiving gala, an event held in a rented tent in the backyard filled with 30-60 relatives and friends. Another part of …
The world has enough beautiful mountains and meadows, spectacular skies, and serene lakes. It has enough lush forests and flowered fields. It has plenty of stars and the promise of a new sunrise and sunset every day. What the world needs more of is people to appreciate and enjoy it. — Michael Josephson
Thank You, Dad for always being there for being strong yet showing you cared. For being my protector and setting the rules for the rides, the money, and the help with school. For all the times I was grounded for my own good I may not have been happy, but I always understood that I am lucky to be one …
Read also, Michael Josephson’s commentary on Appreciating Appreciation.
I hope you will take a few minutes to view them as your tribute to the men and women we owe so much. Watching them all will take less than 20 minutes.
In 1961, President John F. Kennedy, invoked my generation to “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” We are fortunate to live in a free and democratic society where millions of civilians and soldiers serve their fellow citizens. Last Friday was Veteran’s Day and the weekend provided the nation …
There’s a nice poem circulating on the Internet about a woman who bought some cookies and a book at an airport and sat down to read and nibble while waiting for her plane. She soon noticed a man sitting next to her, who casually took a cookie from the bag. Although shocked and seething, the woman remained silent as the …
Long ago when I was a law professor, I was at a conference and a man I didn’t recognize greeted me warmly. He said he wanted to thank me for changing his life. I was embarrassed as I listened to him tell me that he had met me after a speech I had given at his law school. He said …
Every full life has its bright days and its dark days, its triumphs and defeats, its calm and stormy seas. All these high and low experiences could justify viewing the past through the lens of gratitude or disappointment. And the way we characterize our history will determine whether we look toward our future with hopeful expectations or anxious trepidation. Scientists …
…and you could win a personally inscribed copy of Michael Josephson’s poem “What Will Matter.” Please click here to take a quick survey and help us decide on our next steps after the October 17 termination of Michael Josephson’s KNX-1070 AM radio commentaries in Los Angeles. (For more information, see our blog and the LA Times “Big Picture” blog.) In …
If you had the choice of winning $1 million in the lottery or saving a stranger’s life, which would you choose? I suspect many of you think you should say, “saving a life,” but what you are really thinking is how much better your life would be if you were rich. If the test was which act improves the world …
I’ve been enlightened and uplifted by many articles and TV specials commemorating the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. It’s important and appropriate that we pause to honor with reverence and gratitude the lives lost and mangled and the noble efforts of those who struggled mightily to rescue them. We should learn the lesson that life is fragile. We’re all …
Dr. Seuss said, “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” So I’ve mustered my best smile to inform you I was recently given notice by KNX that they will discontinue running my radio commentaries as of October 17. Whatever business or programmatic reasons led to the decision, I want to express sincere and unequivocal gratitude to CBS and …
Let’s be honest. Ethics is not for wimps. It’s not easy being a good person. It’s not easy to be honest when it might be costly, to play fair when others cheat, or to keep inconvenient promises. It’s not easy to stand up for our beliefs and still respect differing viewpoints. It’s not easy to control powerful impulses, to be …
Ramadan Kareem. Ramadan Mubarak. Kul ‘am wa enta bi-khair! (May every year find you in good health!) Please forgive my pronunciation, but I want to respectfully offer warm wishes and greetings to my Muslim brothers and sisters during the holy month of Ramadan. To those whose entire perspective of Islam and the Qur’an is shaped by fear and hatred of …
One of the things I hate most about clichés is that whenever I experience milestone experiences, I have to admit they are true. There’s nothing unique or original about my feelings except that they are mine. So, as I witnessed my daughter Samara turn 18, my mind and heart flooded with trite and corny thoughts and emotions: “Where did the …
While window-shopping in New York City, I saw an old gold watch that reminded me of one my father gave me when I graduated from college. It had been engraved with the simple inscription “Love, Dad.” But it was stolen during a burglary years ago, and I hadn’t thought much of it or the inscription since. I always knew my …
As a former law professor specializing in teaching trial practice, I watched hours and hours of the Casey Anthony murder trial with a keen professional eye. I thought Ms. Anthony’s lead attorney Jose Baez made some terrible decisions, including an opening statement proposing a totally unbelievable theory designed to excuse his client’s mountain of lies and explain how her two-year-old’s …
I once saw a Memorial Day cartoon depicting a car passing an ignored military cemetery alongside a well-travelled country road. Not even noticing the cemetery, the driver says, to his wife: “Blanket? Cooler? Grill? Hot dogs? Did I forget anything?” Yes, he did. Like his countrymen who neglected the cemetery, he forgot to remember why he had the day off. …
