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Cut the Crap Spirituality

I tend to be conservative with money. I’m frugal. When it comes to tipping or being generous, it’s hard for me. I’m worried that I won’t not have enough if I give some of it away. It’s an area I’m working hard to correct. I tend to view right and wrong as whether I will…

When I ask my son: “What’s Up,” his reply is always the same – “Good.” Good, I thought – What kind of response is that? Then after a while I realized he’s one step ahead of me. He’s cutting through the crap. When we ask people “What’s Up,” we aren’t usually looking for a literal…

My son recently lost a tooth. We put his tooth under his pillow, and magically that night the Tooth-Fairy appeared to exchange the tooth for three one dollar bills. My son awoke, and was instantaneously filled with joy. The next day, however, my oldest daughter proclaimed to me – “I know you are the Tooth-Fairy…

Our spiritual beliefs are important, in part, because they form our associations. Our associations, in turn, help form who we become. Who and what we associate with come in many forms. Many of us associate with traditional religion, and create ourselves on a traditional path. Many of us search beyond tradition and look to create…

I recently overheard someone comment that they really dislike sports nowadays because everyone gets a trophy.   He said:  “What are we teaching our kids if everyone gets a trophy?   Trophies lose value if everyone gets them.” It’s hard to disagree with that comment.   I have a son, however, who has some developmental challenges and will likely…

I often am telling our children that their job in life is to create, and they do that through the decisions they make. My daughter replied: “Ok – That’s great.  But how do we know what decisions to make? –  I mean how do we know what is right?” I said:  “Examine, adjust and repeat.”…

After receiving another orthopedic bill from my daughter’s sports injury, I started thinking that kids seem too eager to visit the doctor’s office, and the doctors seem too eager to provide the latest boot, cast  or other orthopedic apparatus.   Health care has become very expensive even with insurance in place. When I was a kid going…

When I walk through the skyway at lunch it is usually so crowed with people, it’s like being in the middle of traffic.   I notice that when people are paying attention and decisive, the “traffic” moves smoothly, but when someone is not paying attention or is indecisive, “jams” occur. It’s a good metaphor for life.  …

Focus on what you have – not what you don’t have. Timothy Velner is a husband, father, attorney and author living in Minneapolis. You can follow his daily blog – a series of discussions between the worry-self and the present-self at – thespiritualgym.me  

I used to run between 20 to 40 miles a week until I ripped my hamstring in a waterskiing accident. That was over a year ago, and I still cannot run like I used to. The loss of running has caused me to truly appreciate running like never before. It got me to thinking about…
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