Travis Smith: my resume, bio and photos back to the main blog page

You know, I sat down once again for that annual “me” ritual—to make a Christmas list—and I was stumped in a different way than before.

I have a rather long Wish List on Amazon.com, and I thought I ought to go through it and see what I so dearly wished for, in case I’d changed my mind or already bought it.

Well, it turns out that, not only are there still a lot of things I haven’t yet got, there are several things that were on my list that I can’t even remember adding.  Things I have barely even heard of.

In other words, the things I wanted enough to Wish for—and a Wish is a powerful thing, in case you haven’t been watching enough kids movies lately—I now hardly even know what they are.

The lesson is a little obvious, so I’ll tell you what I did figure out—I have enough stuff in my life.  My bookshelves are full, my garage is full, my closet is full, and what I really want is time.

So, if you are among my present-buying circle—and certainly, a lot of folks on this list are not, and that’s peachy—my column of two years ago still stands. Make a donation to a charity in my name, and tell me about it.  I’m not about to tell you who to donate to, though I personally have a lot of sympathy for free speech, literacy, and the prevention of certain diseases that have afflicted my close friends and family.

I am, however, adding a new, selfish item to this year’s Christmas list.  I would absolutely love it if you bought a gift certificate to your favorite restaurant, and then KEPT that certificate, and gave me a card that invited me to dinner.  A dinner for just the two of us.  No significant others, spouses, friends, etc.  just a quiet (or perhaps loud, if that’s your style) meal and a chance to catch up, and some good food to make my tummy as happy as my head and my heart.

Merry Christmas to you.

Overheard

“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.”

...who said it?

“Almost every American I know does trade large portions of his life for entertainment, hour by weeknight hour, binge by Saturday binge, Facebook check by Facebook check. I’m one of them. In the course of writing this I’ve watched all 13 episodes of House of Cards and who knows how many more West Wing episodes, and I’ve spent any number of blurred hours falling down internet rabbit holes. All instead of reading, or writing, or working, or spending real time with people I love.”

...who said it?

“Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.”

...who said it?

“I play with variables constantly.”

...who said it?

“Only the person who has learned Continual Love coming from a heart of Gratitude/Worship can effectively deal with the problem of loneliness.”

...who said it?

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