Rob Tourtelot
@rtourtelot
Rob Tourtelot
“In order for the drama to deepen we must see the loneliness of the monster and the cunning of the innocent.”
Episode 93 ft. Vivian Gornick
Vivian Gornick, memoirist and teacher
Understanding that nothing is permanent will have us understand that this moment will never be again - there may be similar moments, there may be more beautiful or uglier moments, but this specific moment will never be again. When we know this, being present and seeing meaning even in the most mundane of things becomes very easy because every... See more
Naida • Ten Ways to Breathe Meaning into Existence
Executive performance coach Julie Gurner on the power of better questions:
“The questions you ask yourself will largely determine the answers you get.
“The questions you ask yourself will largely determine the answers you get.
- “Why am I not successful?” You’ll get answers that berate you.
- “How can I succeed here?” You’ll get answers that push you.
James Clear • 3-2-1: A recipe for unhappiness, the most valuable items in my home, and managing limiting beliefs
But getting older is hard. It is a gift, yes, but it is also heavy. Just as the doors of possibility become fewer and farther between, the burden of grief gets bigger. As the years pass, our losses in life accumulate, threatening to weigh us down. It takes active effort—breaths, walks, conversations with friends, rest—to slow down and remember
... See moreKatie Hawkins Gaar • Is This It? This is It.
Those are the moments when I know that it’s time to tell myself a story so I can understand my behavior and solve the complex problem of my personal history. The solutions often make for great stories and provide us with opportunities to more fully understand ourselves. To make meaning out of who we are from the stories we have lived.
Dan Kennedy • Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling
Most people, as they age, become less selfish and more loving. I think this is true. The great Syracuse poet, Hayden Carruth, said, in a poem written near the end of his life, that he was “mostly Love, now.”
George Saunders's Advice to Graduates
The one practice I kept was writing. It made the cut because I can’t deny how many good things in my life have come as a result of my putting words out into the world. It also felt like a respite: one area where I wasn’t skeptical of my identity. I’m at my most courageous on the page because interrogating my feelings with words feels justified and
... See moreMolly Mielke • (self) concept
Ordinary means that there is no need to add or take away from what is going on in the mind. Each portion of life has the whole of life. There is nothing wrong with what is in the mind except the sense that something is wrong. In this way simplicity turns to a form of compassion.