A Gift of Perserverance...

When I was seventeen I was a sophomore in college at UW-Milwaukee. I worked full time five days per week at a Big Boy restaurant on Kilbourn street in Milwaukee. Tuesday’s and Thursday’s I had off from work and on those days I walked to campus where I fit in a full course load between 9AM and 9PM. The employee break room at the restaurant was like many diner break rooms-kind of dark and cluttered. Amidst the clutter was an old brown piece of wood with a fake-gold plaque mounted on it. The plaque read: Nothing in the world can take the place of perseverance....

Experience Everything...

When I was 16 I stumbled across a small book titled “Letters to a Young Poet” written by Rainer Maria Rilke. In 1903 a nineteen-year-old Franz Kappus wrote to Rilke looking for guidance and a critique of some of his poems. Franz was about to enter the military. The resulting five year correspondence is the most eloquent how-to guide for living a life of meaning, purpose and passion. Amazingly, Rilke was only 27 when he wrote the first letter to Franz. While I highlighted more of the book than I left white, one particular quote always stuck with me. At 16 I...

Don’t Quit...

When I was 10 my favorite thing in the world was to visit Book World-a quant bookstore thirty miles away in the town of Minocqua. I remember when Blue Mountain Arts released their poetry collections. I loved Helen Steiner Rice and began collecting each book as I could afford them. When Book World began carrying small wallet cards I was in Heaven. I didn’t have to save as long! I bought several cards throughout the years but one is still in my wallet today. I guess it would be 24-years-old now. The rectangular gold card shares the following poem: (more…) ...