I like things to be easy.
When I was young, most things came very easily to me. I didn’t have to work hard for much of anything. I quickly learned to stick to the things which were most obvious to me — and which impressed people the most — and just sit back to receive the praise.
For the most part, I‘ve done the same thing for my adult life. Unless I have a huge incentive, I stick to what I know how to do. It’s safe. It gets the praise I crave. And it keeps me from having to risk failure.
But every now and then, I push myself into something completely new. The old fears start surfacing. What if I’m a fraud? What if I fail at this? What if I‘m just embarrassing myself? What if I’m not perfect?
I’m in that position right now as I work toward the first complete episode of my new podcast, Love & Hope. (Listen to the three-minute introduction here.) I know the things I need to do. I’m working on them. But I’m not an expert at these things — and I once again feel the old fear of not being perfect.

It’s hard to nurture what’s alive when you water dead flowers
Spiritual truth can be felt by heart, but not always understood by brain
Emotional health shapes reality of couple more than personality type
The Alien Observer: Craving predictability in a world gone mad
A culture which defines itself by consumption has lost its values
Choose the person you don’t want to spend your life without
If you vote, you’re my real enemy — no matter who gets your vote