Dec 30, 2020
Always proceed as if there will be enough.
Anne Smith, music teacher from Jupiter, FL in Elizabeth Bernstein’s “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)
seen from Uzbekistan
seen from China
seen from South Africa
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Sweden
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United Kingdom
seen from China
seen from Malaysia
seen from Germany
seen from South Africa
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from France
seen from China
seen from Maldives
seen from Germany
seen from South Africa
seen from China
seen from United States
Always proceed as if there will be enough.
Anne Smith, music teacher from Jupiter, FL in Elizabeth Bernstein’s “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)
Elizabeth Bernstein at Interface in Oakland
If you can manifest hope, then you can have the strength and the fortitude to carry on
Kelly Miller, a retired teacher in Platte City, Mo., says her grandmothers taught her to imagine that “tomorrow will be better.” They both “lost everything” in the Depression, yet remained positive. She’s followed their example during difficult times, such as job searches or parenting challenges. “The cornerstone of their advice is hope,” Ms. Miller says. “If you can manifest hope, then you can have the strength and the fortitude to carry on.”
— Elizabeth Bernstein, from “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)
The good news: Hope is malleable. You can boost it.
Elizabeth Bernstein, Finding Hope When Everything Feels Hopeless (wsj.com, October 27, 2020)
Appreciate the day, no matter how difficult
Tamara Wilson’s grandmother taught her to simplify. After Ms. Wilson’s Seattle marketing firm lost business this year, her mother passed along her grandmother’s Depression-era recommendations: “Buy only things you need. Treat yourself once in a while with an ice cream cone or beer. (They’re affordable.) Use the library. Give gifts of food for the holidays. Appreciate the day, no matter how difficult.”
— Elizabeth Bernstein, from “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)
He asked her to consider what she would most value when she looked back years later: having a fun new experience or sticking with stability. “As I faced incredible challenges around work due to the pandemic, I thought of him and the idea of pursuing the option that would leave me with the fewest regrets,” says Ms. Olson.
Charise Olson, an executive director for a nonprofit in Cleburne, TX, in Elizabeth Bernstein’s “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)
Welcome to the Pandemic Meltdown. Have you had yours yet?
“What do I feel?”
“Where do I feel it?”
“What do I need now?”
— Elizabeth Bernstein, The Art of the Pandemic Meltdown (wsj.com, October 6, 2020)
For there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so
Claudia Rosen, a licensed clinical social worker in Evanston, Ill., says her mother taught her that she has control over her mood. Her mom was an English teacher who often quoted Shakespeare: “For there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” “I was raised to believe that even when I don’t have control over external events, such as the pandemic, my attitude can significantly affect my experience,” says Ms. Rosen.
— Elizabeth Bernstein, from “The Best Advice Our Elders Ever Gave Us” (wsj.com, December 22, 2020)