Mark's Musings

Mark's Musings

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  • Stanford’s Healthy Aging 50+ Conference

    February 15, 2024
    health

    Stanford’s Lifestyle Medicine first Healthy Aging 50+ Conference (Agenda, Videos) was held in Feb 2024 .  I was encouraged to find that my understand of what leads to a fit and healthy life has a great deal of overlap with the material they presented. I wish their site existed 12 years ago, it would have…

  • Model of Maturity

    February 3, 2024
    learning, relationships, spiritual

    The following is an integration of material from Life Model Works and what I have learn while coaching and mentoring people since the 1980s. TL;DR Love is the Measure and Goal We were made by God to experience love in the context of relationships. A concise definition of this sort of Godly love is: willing…

  • Gear 2024

    January 1, 2024
    other

    I have an updated list which captures what I am using now. I have found simplicity to be a useful lens which led me to simplify stuff in my life down to a set of items that enable a healthy, impactful life, while removing unnecessary friction and decisions. The following is a complete list of…

  • Eat the Frog

    December 31, 2023
    learning

    Many people make New Year’s resolutions. Within a few weeks the good intent disappears in the face of the realities of daily life. For millennia our wise elders have told us that forming habits is the most effective way to bring about change.  the Bible, Aristotle, the Stoics, Augustine,  Thomas Aquinas and Ben Franklin. In…

  • Optimal Group Sizes

    November 27, 2023
    relationships, systems, work

    The optimal size of a group is first determined by the function of the group. A group will need the requisite skills, abilities, experience, and manpower to accomplish its goal. In addition to function, there are cognitive and social underpinnings which influence the optimal size of a group. Studies suggest optimal group size tends to…

  • Recommended Churches

    November 20, 2023
    spiritual

    The following is my highly opinionated list of churches that I would recommend (or than are on my list to check out at some point). I have a separate post above how to find the right church for you. Silicon Valley Churches I have had a bit of interaction with that seemed good: Vive Mountain…

  • How to Find the “Right” Church for You

    November 20, 2023
    spiritual

    There are numerous reasons why you might be looking for a church. You could be being a journey to explore the Christian faith. You might have recently moved, or maybe you are dissatisfied with the church you previously attended. Whatever the reason you are looking for a church, I would encourage to devote yourself to the…

  • Gaza

    November 19, 2023
    do good

    Hamas, Palestinians, Israel, and the “West” Updated Feb 20, 2025 The  satiric post Israeli, Palestinian officials commit to ensuring kids grow up hating one another underscores the current war between Hamas and Israel will have no winners, just losers. More civilians will be killed. Two populations with be polarized even more. The next generation of…

  • Finding Common Ground

    November 18, 2023
    do good

    What allows people to let go of revenge and drop their contempt for others long enough to actually listen to the other? How do you get people out of their rut? My observation is that this happens when people start to see others as individuals, rather than part of some other group. Rather than reacting…

  • Bema Seat Judgement

    November 17, 2023
    do good, spiritual

    The Bible talks about a judgement that people who know Jesus will undergo (Romans 14:10, 2 Corinthians 5:10, etc). This is often called the Bema seat judgement. I didn’t look forward to this judgement.  It sounds like a…. Judgement.  My expectation is that this would be a lot like the performance reviews have I received…

  • Grief

    November 16, 2023
    relationships

    This has been a grief filled week. My sister’s husband Don passed away on Monday. It that wasn’t enough, most of my close friends have had some new grief in the last few weeks. Finally there is the horrible devastation from the Israel / Hamas war and the “civil” war in Sudan. This morning Hidden…

  • Unity, Freedom, Charity

    November 6, 2023
    spiritual

    In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity. Rupertus Meldenius Over the last 40 years I have often heard this quote. There is some confusion who actually penned this quote. I believe I found an answer in the article In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity.   According to the…

  • Beauty

    October 26, 2023
    design, spiritual

    Today I listened to a wonderful podcast with Sarah Clarkson about the importance of beauty. A quote that will stick with me: beauty is a tangible encounter with God’s goodness  She is very interested in our embodied lives, something that I am coming to see is very important. There was a lot of other good content, including her…

  • Love: The Heart of Goodness

    October 24, 2023
    personal, relationships, spiritual

    Unconditional love is the most powerful and important force in our world. Love is the heart of our connections and communities, possessing the remarkable power to mend fractured relationships and bridge gaps between people. Love not only opens our hearts to others but also serves as a potent catalyst for learning and personal growth. Love…

  • Book Themes

    October 22, 2023
    personal

    I have been spending a bit of time thinking about what’s important to me, what’s shaped my life. I noticed that there seem to be themes which thread the books I love, the stories I tell, and the way I try to live. Today I was looking at the books that have most influenced me,…

  • Spirit of a Place

    October 21, 2023
    spiritual

    I attended a group prayer / worship meeting held in Bridgetown Church’s Prayer: Room. As I entered I felt overwhelmed, moved to tears. The space felt holy. Part of it was the candles and soft lighting. Near the top of the four walls was the Lord’s prayer written out. Below each passage of the prayer…

  • Forest Bathing

    October 20, 2023
    health, outdoors

    When I first hear the Japanese term shinrin-yoku, which is forest bathing in English, I pictured a outdoor onsen that was in the middle of a forest, or maybe a deep soaking tub which was part of an outdoor bathroom attached to a hide-away cabin in the woods. I was wrong. I failed to read…

  • Poetic Chat-GPT

    October 19, 2023
    tech

    In gratitude for changes I tried to capture what I was feeling. I wondered how chat-gpt would improve what I wrote so I fed it my paragraph with a number of different instructions. The original paragraph was: I had planned on going for a hike today, but I missed the group. Instead, I find myself…

  • Gratitude for Changes

    October 17, 2023
    learning, personal

    This morning I have been reflecting on, and being grateful for books, people, and events that has shaped my life. This has been brought about because I am catching up with some old friends, including one that I haven’t seen in 40 years. I am in Portland for most of October. It turns out I…

  • Layoffs Done “Right”

    September 13, 2023
    work

    The recent wave of layoffs within prosperous tech companies has been a wake-up call, especially for younger professionals who have not experienced previous economic downturns. However, those familiar with cyclical business trends or the relentless pursuit of “shareholder value” are neither shocked nor surprised. Why Layoffs Happen Layoffs often signal that a company’s executives believe…

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Mark's Musings