Time Out

Understanding from the inside out.

by Renee Garfinkel, Ph.D.

We Need a New Word: Friendz-iness

Stephen Colbert gave us truthiness, corporations drown us in friendziness... Read More

Why We Love Dear Old Dad

“Anyone can be a father, but it takes a real man to be a dad” – Anonymous Read More

What’s so Tough About Apologizing?

An apology is a good way to have the last word - Anonymous Read More

Magic Laughter

“I can still make you laugh,” my husband of 40+ years observed happily the other day. So I started thinking of laughter's role in love. Read More

Up with Pessimism!

Acceptance is the matchmaker that can bring optimism and pessimism into a happy union. Read More

The Textbook Study: Flawed and Wrong

Did political correctness paper over real differences between Israel and Palestinian textbooks? Read More

On Laughter and Tears

You cry at happy weddings and sad movies…is that what makes you human? Read More

How to Be Uncool

For the happily uncool, a dated look expresses a kind of freedom others have yet to experience. Read More

On Laughter and Loneliness

“That was the most fun I’ve had without laughing!” – Woody Allen to his lover, Diane Keaton, in the movie, "Annie Hall". Read More

Isaac's Meditation

Was Isaac the first "Western" religious contemplative? Read More

The Trouble with Money

The trouble is conflict of interest. It's time to change the system. Read More

Savoring Awe

Is the experience of awe all positive? Read More

It’s a familiar phenomenon: become interested in a topic, and you begin to notice it everywhere. Then you begin to expect it, and you’re even more likely to encounter it. Parents and teachers see this phenomenon all the time in the dynamic of “catch them being good”. When the adult is primed to notice a child’s good behavior she begins to see more of it. Read More

Quiet Heroes

Do you know any quiet heroes? There are probably more of them than we might imagine, since they are so easily overlooked. Quiet heroes often struggle on their inner battlefield, but even when their challenges are external and public, quiet heroes seldom call attention to themselves. Read More

Where Are the Monuments To Peace?

Here in Washington, we honor the powerful by erecting monuments to them. You can’t miss the memorials on even a casual stroll around town, monuments to leaders, conquerors, warriors and visionaries: Washington, Lincoln, Simon Bolivar, and FDR. Read More

Boredom: The Devil and Divine Discontent

Most of us know what it feels like to be bedeviled by boredom. Read More

On Laughter and Improbability

This is the season of masquerade holidays for both Christians and Jews. While Purim and Carnival or Mardi Gras differ dramatically in their history—and in their meaning, message and customs—the holidays resonate with some of the deepest chords of the human condition. Read More

Military Service Changes Soldiers’ Personalities

People who choose to serve in the military are different from those who don't. The experience of military service then exaggerates the personality differences in small but significant ways, which remain that way when soldiers return to civilian life. These personality differences may play a role in the veterans' high divorce rate, and their other social and occupational problems.</p Read More

The Power of Absence

What do deadbeat dads, estranged or dead relatives, and birth parents in closed adoptions have in common? What they have in common is the power of absence. That's when what isn't there is what captures attention, and traps it in an emotional embrace. The power of absence; let's look at how it works. Read More

TREASON!

America's Dysfunctional-Family Foreign Policy

The Easy Way to Peace

The gentle man who rose to give his presentation at the Middle East TED X conference is no huckster, PR hack or snake oil salesman. Nevertheless, his title, "The Easy Way to Peace in the Holy Land", seems over-the-top, even for this part of the world, long the birthplace of prophets and dreamers. Read More

Judging the News

This is the age of information. We are surrounded by its endless flow. The odd thing is, the more information we get, the harder it is to find knowledge. Are you getting news, or views? Read More

Airport Security Theater

I used to love flying. I was in love with the mystique of travel with its promise of places and people unknown and exotic. Airports meant the anticipation of adventure. I used to love flying, but not anymore. Read More

Coming Home With Fresh Eyes

The great blessing of travel is to return home with grace and greater clarity of vision. Having been away from routines, even from happy routines, having seen different sights, walked different terrain, having listened to different conversations and heard different concerns, can, if you're lucky, lead you back home, which you now suddenly SEE! Read More

More Hats of Jerusalem

Here in Israel the sacred is everywhere. The obvious shrines and traditional holy places are only the beginning. With discerning eyes one can see the sacred reflected in the ordinary Israeli person's life: in her reverence for the land, her passion for justice, and her unselfconscious references to and use of biblical language. Read More

Hats of Jerusalem

According to a report released last week by the Pew Research Center Forum on Religion and Public Life, nearly a third of the world's population live in countries where it is becoming more difficult to freely practice religion. In some countries, such as China, Nigeria, Thailand and Britain, public hostility to religion is the problem. Read More

Crime After Crime

Once in a rare while, a movie is made that rocks you to the very core of your soul with a theme as old as civilization and a message as deep as a myth. "Crime After Crime" is that movie, and what's more...it's a documentary. Read More

Will Baby Boomers Change The World Again?

The baby boomer generation, that demographic bulge born into an optimistic, prosperous nation fresh from its victory in World War II, impacted American society as it passed through every life stage. New schools were required to accommodate their huge numbers, which led to open classrooms, and other educational experiments. Read More