Super 8

Experiences vs. Possessions

"The cheapskate next door knows something that numerous social scientists have confirmed, including Ryan Howell, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychology at San Francisco State University. Howell’s research not only supports the idea that spending to create life experiences, as opposed to accumulating more possessions, makes us happier; his findings also show that the relative amount we spend on those experiences doesn’t directly impact the level of happiness they provide. A $27 dinner, for example, can bring the same amount of happiness as a $400 weekend getaway.

So the important thing is not how much we spend on an experience – assuming it costs anything at all – but rather that we make the effort to have them. For that, of course, we need time. That’s why, as discussed before, the cheapskate next door values his time and what he can do with it more than money and the stuff he can buy with it.

When I speak to groups about the virtues of the cheapskate lifestyle, I like to ask the adults in the audience how many birthday and holiday gifts from their childhood they remember, and how many of those gifts they still own today. The answer is usually just a couple, at most, of the countless gifts most of us were showered with when we were kids.

Then I ask them how many memories from those same special occasions they remember and cherish even more with each passing year. You can see the light bulbs coming on. As the cheapskates next door know, possessions tend to disappoint and become less valuable over time, while experiences often retain or even increase in value with age."

Jeff Yeager
The Cheapskate Next Door

being human

But there does need to be a new realization that being human is something great, a great challenge, to which the banality of just drifting along doesn't do justice. Any more than the attitude that comfort is the best way to live, that feeling healthy is the sum and substance of happiness. There needs to be a new sense that being human is subject to a higher set of standards, indeed, that it is precisely these demands that make a greater happiness possible in the first place. There needs to be a sense that being human is like a mountain-climbing expedition that includes some arduous slopes. But it is by them that we reach the summit and are able to experience for the first time how beautiful it is to be. Emphasizing this is a particular concern to me."

-Pope Benedict XVI
Light of the World

Full Moon

"I wish to be like the moon . . .

A beautiful reflection of the Son."

Photo and Quote by Janenne deClouet

Reality of Progress

"Q: 'God saw everything that he had made,' the Book of Genesis says, 'and behold, it was very good.' It is frightening , then, what has meanwhile become of this dream of a planet. The question is this: Is the earth quite simply not sustaining the enormous developmental potential of our species? Is it perhaps not designed at all for us to remain here in the long run? Or are we doing something wrong here?
Answer:

Light of the World

Family Matters

“The home is (or should be) the primary and the most natural environment in which love is given and received. The love and unity of the family serves as the foundation for the growth of the children, providing a sense of identity, peace, trust, openness, and joy that will prepare them to take their place in society. Small acts of thoughtfulness to those closest to us make them feel welcome, accepted, worthy, and appreciated. The home offers ample opportunities for sharing joys, bearing hardships together, providing support in suffering, putting oneself at the disposal of others, seeking not to be served but rather to serve – all expressions of love. Where ‘tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule,’ the family, both parents and children, will grow in holiness.”

Where There is Love There is God

If i ever get the nerve to say hello in this cafe...