Leap Year Lesson #314: Be a Safe Place for Others

You've probably seen one of the yellow and black diamond "Safe Place" signs on businesses and other locations.  The one shown here is their latest logo.  It is the symbol for National Safe Place - a youth outreach organization that educates youth about threatening situations and seeks to provide safe shelters for youth in crisis.  …

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Leap Year Lesson #310: Don’t Expect Those With Different Values To Be Or Act Like You

I suspect that many of us prefer to live in a world where the majority of others agrees with us on significant matters.  Unless you're unusually driven by conflict and controversy, you have a strong affinity for those who are a lot like you.  That's understandable.  It's a fact of basic human nature even if …

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Leap Year Lesson #309: How You Handle Loss Reveals Character and Maturity

My preferred candidate lost last night's presidential election.  Actually, my preferred candidate (Mike Huckabee) didn't even run for president, but of the two main contenders, I voted for the more conservative one in keeping with my beliefs, values and underlying philosophy of the role of government.  It was a close election, but in the end, …

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Leap Year Lesson #308: Don’t Just Sit There – Do Something

We've all heard the Edmund Burke quote (or a close variation of it) that "All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."  It's a reminder that we cannot stand on the sidelines and watch evil, immoral actions take place while we remain silent, or else we are complicit …

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