The purpose of leadership is not to make the present bearable. The purpose of leadership is to make the future possible.

To be enlightened is to know that heaven is not "coming." Heaven is here.

Lent is the time for trimming the soul and scrapping the sludge off a life turned slipshod. Lent is about taking stock of time, even religious time. Lent is about exercising the control that enables us to say no to ourselves so that when life turns hard of its own accord we have the stamina to yes to its twists and turns with faith and hope. Lent is the time to make new efforts to be what we say we want to be.

Hope grows in us, despite our moments of darkness, regardless of our regular bouts of depression.

In our dreams lies our unfinished work for the world.

We are each called to go through life reclaiming the planet an inch at a time until the Garden of Eden grows green again.

Life is an exercise in the development of feeling. When we repress feelings, we become sour and judgmental. When we live awash in great feeling over small things, we become jaded long before we have even begun to enjoy. When feelings are in balance they sweeten long days and great distances with gratitude and hope.