Last week Thom and I held a discussion group with friends.  Our topic was to share any quotes that we felt had influenced our lives in a long-lasting and profound way.  It was harder than you think because all of us love quotes and like me, had hundreds to choose from.  Then I found it.  My quote was one that I read in an old, old newspaper column by Ann Landers (I said it was old, didn’t I?) It meant so much to me I cut it out and saved it all these years.  The fact that it was by one of my favorite authors, Ralph Waldo Emerson, made it even more special. But what has occurred to me since then was how it subtly influenced me all these years and how it became a tribute to what I hoped to be when I got older. I wonder how many of us take the time to consider the “messages” we absorbed when we were younger and how they continue to influence our lives. Did we become who we always hoped to be? [Read more…]