Brenna
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In Praise of Laundry and Dishes
I do a lot of dishes and laundry. These two activities – unless you live in a nude colony and always eat out – are inescapable facts of life. Unlike training for a marathon or writing a novel, there are no compounded returns. There’s no muscle being toned. No skill being polished. You wash the…
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A Useful Life Is a Happy Life
The true joy in life is not in focusing on yourself, but in being used for a mighty purpose.
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Beauty and Design Matter to Your Happiness
How much do the spaces we live and work in affect our happiness?
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The Best Friendships Are Virtuous Ones
Most of us want “forever friends” who will fulfil us, but they aren’t that easy to find. Luckily, Aristotle had some insight.
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The Paradox of Anger
Anger is a paradox in that even in the face of injustice, we find peace when we focus on the only thing we can control: ourselves.
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Is Family Life at Odds with a Philosophical Life?
Most of the household names in Western philosophy weren’t married. Is a contemplative life more important than family life, or is this a false choice?
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The Life-Affirming Need for Spontaneity
Spontaneity is one of the most life-affirming traits we can cultivate, but our fear of novelty and love for control holds us back.
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You Are Responsible for the Care and Feeding of Your Ideas
When I was younger, libraries and bookstores made me melancholy. Every time I entered a bright roomful of books, a sinister little voice told me, “Here are at least ten million ideas that smarter, sexier people beat you to. What’s the point?” You too may have experienced this melancholy. And after years of writing and…
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In Defense of Daydreaming
Our outer lives are short, but our inner lives are nearly limitless — thanks to our ability to daydream.
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The Thorny Balance Between Love and Freedom
Freedom and committed love are two things most of us want and need. Can we find a balance to achieve both?
