“To survive, you must tell stories.”
— Umberto Eco
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Posts Tagged ‘Thoughts’
Wishing You Happy Endings
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »
The Power of Story
Posted in Holidays, Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, future of civilization, history, memory, Thoughts on January 27, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Today is Holocaust Memorial Day. I do try to emphasize the brighter side of life in this blog and this is not that, but it’s important. Fewer children are taught this history and too many adults act like it never happened (and could never happen again).
As survivors pass on those of us who remain must remember what and how and why. Not only for those who died, but for ourselves and our futures. This is the power of stories.
It is right that those who committed atrocities be held responsible, but remembrance days like this aren’t primarily about blame for past guilt. They are about the political tides that make these events possible. They are about the ordinary people swept up in such times.
Most of all, they are about avoiding future repetition.
International Holocaust Remembrance Day – United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United Nations General Assembly designated January 27—the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau—as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a time to remember the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and the millions of other victims of Nazi persecution.
‘New way of bearing witness’: one of biggest Holocaust archives goes online
Announced on Holocaust Memorial Day, the Wiener Holocaust Library’s new online platform includes more than 150,000 items collected over nine decades. Users can view letters, pamphlets and photographs that record the rise of fascism in Britain and Europe.
My grandpa chose not to speak about his Holocaust experiences – but he asked me to tell the world
I’ve been asked why I believe Holocaust education is so important, and I find it hard to verbalise. It seems so obvious to me, as the grandchild of survivors, that these stories must continue to be told – it sounds cliche to quote “those who forget history are doomed to repeat it”, but with every passing year, it’s clear we are continuing to forget the horrors humanity is capable of. Gyuri’s final message was clear: tell the world, so they can learn from it.
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Understanding Others, and Ourselves
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, brain science, brunch, science, society, Thoughts, truth on January 26, 2025| Leave a Comment »
We had brunch today with good friends. They are smart and fun and interesting and love our cat (which, let’s face it, is about the best thing you can say about a person).
We don’t all share the same politics. Why do I mention this? To point out that it doesn’t matter.
We may not be on the same page in terms of voting and algorithms, but we like a lot of the same real-life things, we share a lot of the same fundamental values, and are always curious about the others’ experience and perspectives.
It doesn’t hurt that they like my cooking;)
How to step out of your inner monologue and understand the world better – Big Think
The interesting thing about being a human is that we’re stuck inside our internal model—it’s all we ever see. But with the endeavors of science, literature, and philosophy, we’re able to step outside of ourselves and understand, “Hey, the way I see the world isn’t the only way to see the world. It’s not the only truth.” The more we get good at that, the more we can try to build a better society.
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Have Fun Writing
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, art, creativity, life, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“We are the opening verse of the opening page of the chapter of endless possibilities.”
— Rudyard Kipling
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Expect the Unexpected!
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, Thoughts on January 21, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Ah, the ongoing joys of adulting! Fortunately, things are pretty okay today, and there are a lot of positives to adulting, too (ice cream for dinner! voting! autonomy!). That said, I ran across this comic the other day and it felt true, or at least truer than my eight-year old self might have expected.
I’m off to call customer service, figure out what’s for dinner, and then maybe watch a little Star Wars!
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To Dreams, and Waking
Posted in Holidays, Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, action, inspiration, persistence, progress, Thoughts on January 20, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”
— Martin Luther King Jr.
Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day, everyone! Today, I plan to celebrate the beauty of dreams, and the satisfaction of bringing those dreams to life.
“Be a bush if you can’t be a tree. If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. If you can’t be a sun, be a star. For it isn’t by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.”
— Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more about Dr King, his impact, speeches like “I Have a Dream” and more, check out History’s site on Martin Luther King Jr.
I also appreciate this related quote:
“The best way to make a dream come true is to wake up.”
— Anna Wintour
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Be That Spark
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, Thoughts on January 19, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.”
— Albert Schweitzer
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If We So Choose
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, #ChooseYourFuture, books, creativity, inspiration, Octavia Butler, predictions, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 17, 2025| Leave a Comment »
My mother sent me an article about Octavia Butler, one of a number I’ve seen recently in the wake of the LA fires. Butler was an award-winning sci-fi and fantasy author know for her all-too-realistic versions of the future. Although she died in 2006, a week of devastating fires in LA fit right in with her vision of 2025.
In fact, she was once asked how she was able to predict the problems of the future as accurately as she did, and her answer is a telling lesson for writers but also for people who want to make a difference.
“A Few Rules for Predicting the Future” by Octavia E. Butler – Seven Good Things
“I didn’t make up the problems,” I pointed out. “All I did was look around at the problems we’re neglecting now and give them about 30 years to grow into full-fledged disasters.”
Ouch.
But that’s not all Butler said. I recommend you read the essay in full. It’s not long, but it packs a punch.
“Okay,” the young man challenged. “So what’s the answer?”
“There isn’t one,” I told him.
“No answer? You mean we’re just doomed?” He smiled as though he thought this might be a joke.
“No,” I said. “I mean there’s no single answer that will solve all of our future problems. There’s no magic bullet. Instead there are thousands of answers, at least. You can be one of them if you choose to be.”
I so choose, and I hope you do, too.
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Expect Reckless Posting
Posted in Funny, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, food, free reads, short stories, Thoughts on January 16, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I’ll be working on a cake recipe this weekend, and I’m thinking about it now. As I mentally work my way through possible iterations and prepare to release this recipe into the world (or at least the personal archive that is this blog), I’m thinking of this funny piece:
Look, I get it. You thought what you posted was innocuous. Still, did you stop to think about everyone who has ever lived and how it could make them feel?
I mean, it’s cake and not chili, but no, no I did not.
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Are You Super?
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, citizen scientists, history, Library of Congress, Thoughts on January 15, 2025| Leave a Comment »
It turns out I’m super, and you might be too!
The National Archives needs Citizen Archivists who can read cursive
“Reading cursive is a superpower,” said Suzanne Isaacs, a community manager with the National Archives Catalog in Washington, D.C.
If you’d like to help the Library of Congress decipher History (yes, with a capital H), consider becoming a volunteer Citizen Archivist.
Because History is cool, and so are you.
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Alessio Fiorentino on Unsplash
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