This is Gabe. . . If you want to know Gabe you have to look carefully, because with Gabe, appearances can often be deceiving. He looks like he isn’t studying. One …
Wisdom From Small Moments
There are many big moments in life (you know, playing cello for Yo-Yo Ma), and many big decisions to make, (such as which college you want to attend), but wisdom grows …
Side-By-Side
Side-by-side, covered in dirt and dripping with sweat; we dug, pried, lifted and rolled. We dragged and pulled those hunks of granite from the ground and hauled them …
Report Card
Rachel is a really smart girl, but she has to work harder than most people think to get good grades in school. This has been a tough year for her because she's taking …
Happy Eighteenth Birthday – Rare Air
Rare Air For an instant, one crucial moment waiting on the edge, time stands still. Your bow is poised over the strings, your back stiff and straight, your eyes …
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Problem Solving
You learn a lot in college if you focus and apply yourself, but most important is what you learn about how to solve problems, how to persevere under stress and how to …
Pack of Peanuts
Rachel is teaching cello to a peanut. The pint-sized girl has to sit on a doll's chair just to make it possible for her feet to brush the floor. She has the smallest …
Mailing A Package
Rachel: "Is this too bulky to mail?" (a bunch of odd items she's sending to a friend at college, all stuffed randomly into a large yellow envelop—actually a very …
I Signaled
The wind blew in gusts of 50 mph yesterday. With a bow saw on each shoulder I climbed 20 feet into the snarled branches of the cherry tree. Twisting and turning and …
Grocery Shopping With My Daughter
On the way to the store we both try to get the other to listen to our preferred music, and must admit that over the years we have each broadened our musical tastes. I …
Happy Graduation
Ben, I’m impressed. Throughout high school, with quiet dignity, you conquered every challenge you faced. You worked hard, very hard, and then you worked even harder. …
At Sixteen You Are A Quiet Person Who Speaks Volumes
I’ve heard people say that you’re quiet, that you’re shy. They might sometimes say that they are often left to wonder what you think, what you really have on your …
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