Author Archives: fearlessanalyst

Swing dancing 101*

On a recent Saturday night as I watched a crowd of mainly young adults dancing Swing to the strains of the Toronto Jazz Orchestra, I felt a surge of hope for the future.   A regular Saturday night event, this dance … Continue reading

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There but for luck…#2

I’ll call him Mr. Suburbia because he had to move a long way out of the city to find an affordable room.   At some point he developed brain damage – he believes caused by Paxil, though the frontal part of … Continue reading

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There but for luck… #1

Not everyone has the good fortune to talk with people who “live the life” in the street or at a level of extreme poverty.  I’ve had that opportunity on many occasions for reasons not relevant here. But every time I … Continue reading

Posted in causes, compassion, consciousness, education, Inclusion, personal growth, personal power, poverty, Reflection, schizophrenia, suicide, values | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Lost friends #2

Seems to me there’s a lesson learned with each lost friend – as with all of life’s significant experiences. When the friendship is lost through death, there are perhaps different types of lessons, but they are there for the plucking … Continue reading

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Lost friends #1

There’s a ‘Pennsylvania Dutch’ saying I like: “We grow too soon old, and too late smart”.  And of course we never stop hearing “Hindsight is 20/20”.  We’re all familiar with the idea that we can’t seem to gather up any … Continue reading

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Attack of stigma…

I have asked what changes we might be willing to make, as neighbours, as friends, as relatives, as a society, that would contribute to eliminating stigma*.  I didn’t ask the question because I had an answer, but because I wanted … Continue reading

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Lost potential…

“R” and I sat glued to our conversation, astonished and excited that, by some amazing coincidence, we both had a passionate interest in what we were talking about: how mental distress tends to be handled  by the psychiatric or medical … Continue reading

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My own ‘story of stuff’

I think it must have been in my twenties that I first became aware of the-problem-of-stuff; probably listening to conversations about “Silent Spring” – Rachel Carson’s consciousness-raising book that sounded the alarm possibly for the first time. I remember in … Continue reading

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I do love the morning…

I do love the morning.   I’ve always assumed there is just something intrinsically beautiful about mornings, but today as I strolled along in the cool shadows of late dawn, it struck me that there is also something different about me at … Continue reading

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Imperfection welcome

I am wearing a simple ring that I made possibly 25 years ago.  For decades it lay in the dark, unworn, because it was a failed, imperfect piece.   It was hidden, in the same way I hid occasional creations – … Continue reading

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