Bill McDonald's Newsletter: 'Paying Attention'
An Antidote to Despair
Hope At the turn of the year, I heard many comments from friends and clients, that we have just come through a most difficult year (2025). Some of those who had suffered personal difficulty or tragedy, would seem able to look to the New Year 2026 with Hope. Now hope is generally an American phenomenon, whenever in doubt – we are trained, or train ourselves, to ‘look for a silver lining.” I long remember my sixth grade Sunday School teacher, Mrs. Bessie Locke, who was also the county Republican Chairperson,
My monthly newsletter, “Paying Attention,” was launched in April, 2007. Each one contains thoughts and ideas that occur in the general areas of psychology, culture, or other matters that come from the interface between my work and the rest of the world. They may also contain news and information about myself, and new areas of my work, study and research.
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An Antidote to Despair
Hope At the turn of the year, I heard many comments from friends and clients, that we have just come through a most difficult year
The Medicine Inside
Backstory You will note from the date at the end of this December Newsletter, that I am very late to write for this month. I
Run toward the Roar
There’s a story that comes out of Africa – that I’ve heard told a number of times – which is often the case with important
The Bells of Nuremberg
Backstory When preparing my August Newsletter, recalling as a 27 year old foreign exchange Summer in Nuremberg (southern Germany) a long forgotten memory emerged, that
Mosquitoes and Telemarketers
On the Church Sign in front of St. Jude’s Church in Fenton, our Priest-in-Charge added a few months ago, “Wish Noah had Swatted Those 2
Otto Pitzke’s Scar
Backstory In the Summer of 1958, before my Senior Year in high school, I had the privilege of being chosen as a Summer exchange student
A New Way to Pray – Boldly
OK, for this one I’m putting on my semi-religious/spiritual writer’s hat. First, some backstory. My father was a Methodist minister. My mother the daughter of
A “Third Thing”
This concept has been bouncing around in my head for a number of years, with no memory where it came from. I believe it was
On Hearing Yourself Through the Ears of Another
From a few Story-Tellers with ancient roots that I’ve experienced (and emulated), I’ve heard the following type of preface: “I carry this story within me,
Survival with Integrity
This is a difficult time for so many right now. Many don’t know what to believe, who to trust. Many don’t know what to do.
Liars
Part Two in a series on Countering Aggression Lying as Aggression My working definition here of lying is A conscious corruption of reality by the
Personal Protection – the Pocket Mirror
Part One in a series on Countering Aggression Backstory Many years ago, when my children were “just kids,” I wandered into our living room where