Here in the US, the word “pilgrims” makes us think of Thanksgiving: of tall-hatted English people and Native Americans, sitting together along a wooden table. When I first learned about pilgrims at five or six years old, I never dreamed that someday, I would be one too.  

All of us make mistakes and hurt others. Unfortunately, that’s just part of life. But one of the truest marks of someone’s character is how they handle those mistakes and those hurts that they cause. We may often demand immediate apologies from those who have wronged us, but are we so quick to offer the apologies when we have wronged others?

Imagine a beautiful mustang running wild and free in an open field, enjoying the freedom we all dream of. Sometimes, he feeds from a rancher’s trough and slips away before the rancher can touch him.

Is it the struggle that matters, or what we become as we engage in it?

It’s easy to be grateful when we get things that we want. If someone gives us a beautiful gift or cooks us a delicious meal, it’s natural to smile and to thank them and to feel real gratitude. But what about when the things we get aren’t what we asked for, or even something we actively dread? Can we find the strength to be grateful for things we get that we never asked for?

Whoever first invented spring cleaning must have been really tired of winter. We don’t get much winter weather here in Southern California. But once the days get longer and brighter, I start thinking about how I can improve my space. Although I live pretty simply now, it took me a long time to figure out how to keep only the few things that bring me joy. 

Solitude is almost a foreign concept today. We’re connected to other people 24 hours a day. Most people sleep with smartphones inches from our head. We stare at computer monitors for hours at a time at work and call watching television while checking social media “unwinding.” We’ve completely lost the ability to be alone.  

(Grace’s Note: This post deals with topics that some of you may find stressful, such as dieting, exercising and weight loss. If these are difficult things for you to read about, you may want to skip over this one.)