The Shopping Addict’s Redemption

When I was young, my mother was infamous for her habit of constantly buying and returning things. I sometimes answered the door when the man from our local department store made his weekly call to pick up packages. Once, when I didn’t know where the package was he told me, “she keeps them in the hall closet on the top shelf.” (He was right.) Later in life, my mother graduated to returning condominiums – putting down deposits one week and collecting them the next before the cancellation deadline. At the time, this compulsion of hers was simply puzzling. But as is the case with so many facets of our parents’ lives, we begin to understand them better over time and sometimes even find ourselves falling into the same idiosyncratic patterns we ridiculed as children. Consider the following: Read more

Faith: Part of a Healthy Diet

If you’re having a rough day, chances are, you’re anxious. And it’s no wonder. Living in today’s fast-paced world can fill the mind with restless thoughts. It’s an issue that ultimately boils down to one question: How do I deal with my stress? If you tour the streets of London, England, a simple solution might drive by. As part of a new awareness campaign, public transit buses now flaunt an advertisement professing, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Read more