Motivational speaker and author Jim Rohn said “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Your income, weight, habits and even marital satisfaction is tied to some degree to the significant people in your life. Think for a minute about who influences you. Are your good friends, co-workers and […]
Some decisions are difficult to make. We can be stuck in a quandary of right and wrong, good and bad. Let’s consider tough issues such as whether to purchase and carry a gun. Or, decisions on how to respond to your friend who is a bully. Do you take a stand against bullying, or does […]
Drug overdoses from heroin or pain medicine happen more often than you’d think. Just last week, 74 people overdosed on the west side of Chicago within a 72-hour period. They likely overdosed on tainted heroin. I’ve written before about the high rate of overdoses in our local community. I surveyed a group of ten people […]
“Build it and they will come” is what I had envisioned when I took steps to start a domestic violence program for batterers. I was aware that there were no social service agencies in our county who treated the people who commit acts of violence on their intimate partners. We have a fabulous agency that […]
Let’s talk about depression. There are many myths about what depression is, and what it isn’t. Frequently, people who have not experienced severe depression have a misunderstanding of what they believe it is. They may think, “it’s all in your head,” “you’re not depressed, you’re just having a bad day,” or “you just need a […]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that heroin use and overdose deaths have increased significantly in the United States. They attribute the rise in heroin use with addiction to prescribed painkillers and the low cost of heroin. This is so worrisome that the CDC is calling the trend an “epidemic.” At the same […]
I met an interesting man yesterday. David Smith has hosted 114 international Rotary students over the past 36 years. When asked why he does this, he stated that it broadens his understanding of different cultures. It has allowed him to create new friendships and new family bonds around the world as a host father. Although […]
In reading the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper today, I see an article of a domestic violence victim. Lynette Butler fears for her safety. Although she took her husband to court and received an order of protection, she feels afraid. Her husband, Maurice Martin, was fitted with a GPS device so that Lynette can be alerted if […]
In Kenton County, Kentucky, a sheriff’s deputy worked as a school resource officer in an elementary school. There were an 8-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl in that school who suffer from ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. When the children acted out in class, becoming aggressive, the deputy placed them in handcuffs. The children […]
I admire people who lose weight and keep it off. I respect people who train for and run marathons. I celebrate cancer survivors. It takes great discipline to achieve these goals. It is time that we celebrate the achievement of people who recover from drug addiction. It is no small feat to achieve long term […]