The foundation of creativity

One of the myths related to hippies is that they lived only in coastal cities or rural communes.

The earliest surge of hippie culture took place in coastal cities such as San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles, but almost every city had a neighborhood or public place where hippies hung out.

Many people think hippies with flowers in their hair were at the heart of the antiwar movement. However, antiwar protesters and hippies were usually two different groups.

• Hippies prioritized spiritual enlightenment, community building, drugs, and rock-and-roll.
• Hippies were indifferent or opposed to activists' political organizing.
• Hippies hoped to change America by seceding from established institutions, not by reforming them.
• Hippies disregarded popular norms and instead looked inward for peace and wisdom.

Social connection makes hope possible. This is the message in the film based on the life of 13-year-old William Kamkwamba. The story plays off in Malawi during a famine caused by a series of natural disasters.

William's family cannot afford for him to continue with school, and William is forbidden to return. But William sneaks back into school and gets permission to continue using the school's library. He develops strong ties with his science teacher, librarian, family, friends, and fellow villagers.

He ultimately discovers how wind energy can bring water to his village and save them from perishing.

The Farewell is about a first-generation Chinese immigrant, Billi. She wants to visit her dying grandmother, Nai-Nai, in China, to say goodbye.

Nai-Nai is unaware of the seriousness of her illness while the family believes it is kinder to keep her illness a secret and make her happy. Conflict ensues as Billi wants to tell Nai-Nai the truth. This is a tale of how people express love differently and the quiet wisdom and positive outlook of Nai-Nai.

Much can be learned from how you each deal with conflict, and avoiding it keeps you from that knowledge. 

An inability to resolve conflict is a major reason why in-love feelings fade away.

Ask the important questions -- about values, money, children, religion/spirituality, past relationships.

If you are afraid to be forthright in your questions, then the fear itself is letting you know that your fear of rejection may be in charge -- which means you have more inner work to do.

Once we realize that every moment is a gift, we will not waste it but use it intentionally, for something important and meaningful.

It is important that we set some clear priorities and create space for them. 

This exercise makes us value our limited time and sheds away the unnecessary activities from our day. 

We start living a vivid life, and slow down, becoming fully present in the moment, savoring time like a limited edition treat before it vanishes.

"Understanding someone’s suffering is the best gift you can give another person. Understanding is love’s other name. If you don’t understand, you can’t love."  - Thich Nhat Hanh

"… The most precious inheritance that parents can give their children is their own happiness. Our parents may be able to leave us money, houses, and land, but they may not be happy people. If we have happy parents, we have received the richest inheritance of all."  - Thich Nhat Hanh

.. was Jack LaLanne, whose self-titled fitness show in the US ran from 1951 to 1985, after which his celebrity status made him appear in prime-time sports and even on The Simpsons.

His bulging biceps coupled with a soft, empathic approach had a sense of intimacy and motivation, which resulted in a magnetic pull on women and children.

... an expert mountaineer and youth fitness advocate, founded the Institute of Physical Fitness in NY in 1954, making her a force to reckon with and a regular on prime-time US shows.

She enjoyed a long and prosperous media career until the age of 97 when she died in 2011.

When working inside of a team and not only, individuals feel the need to know that they are being listened to, valued and acknowledged. Establishing real connections at work, based on mutual respect and care, leads to more successful careers and companies.

The brain’s building blocks are neurons: nerve cells that receive and transmit signals along neural pathways. Certain pathways are forged at birth. Others can be manipulated by learning. 

So when you’re stuck in a rut, your brain’s neurons could literally be stuck on a neural pathway you’ve carved out through your behavior. But you can get unstuck by choosing to make new connections.

• The corporate jargon is often described as fluffy, without any real substance and aimed towards the speaker’s self-inflated ego.
• Words are substituted for analogies and references that take longer to process, and have the intention of wrapping, hiding or impeding actual, effective communication.

Corporate speak may not mean anything of value to anyone in a meeting, but like the Emperor's New Clothes, no one wants to point out the inefficiency and mind-numbing nature of the constant use of the jargon. Everyone pretends that they are on the same page as everyone else.