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Floating Texas Rivers

April 30, 2018

Summer is coming and living in Boerne gives us many opportunities to partake in activities involving water. We live near…

History – All Roads Lead

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April 30, 2018

The very first road builders in Texas were the American bison, whose scientific classification is the very Roadrunner-esque Bison bison…

Summer Camps

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April 30, 2018

Are you looking for something that will not only be fun for your children, but also inspires learning, self esteem…

Dearest EXPLORE Reader, I read a lot. In my previous life, I was a voracious reader of fiction, and had read every Stephen King book multiple times over. As I’ve gotten older, I have found that I read a lot of stuff about self-improvement. Some of it is in the printed form, and some of…

Golf “Pro”

The Texas Hill Country offers some of the best golfing experiences anywhere in the state. Courses designed by pros who’s names even non-golfing types know. Fantastic. Problem is, unless you make mid-six figures, you probably never have, nor ever will play on a course like that. We here at EXPLORE are a frugal bunch. Not…

Spiritual – Strengthen What Remains

Lately I’ve been learning a lot about NOT being perfect. That’s right, I know this might make your head explode, but your humble little writer is actually imperfect. I know that’s hard to believe, but I assure you that it’s very, very true. I’m a flawed man and father and son, and I do a…

From The Publisher

Dearest EXPLORE Reader, Plato once said, “He who commits injustice is ever made more wretched than he who suffers it.” The concept of “injustice” is a topic that I’ve spent a little time on lately. I’ve even written about it in these little Publisher letters, and I’m not sure I’ve made a lot of progress…

Sweet Eats

Easter may have been on April 1st, but we’re willing to bet you’re still wading through the piles of wrappers and finding that fake Easter basket grass in places you never thought possible. We thought it would be fun to enlighten our readers with some Easter candy facts so that next year you can impress…

From The Publisher

Dearest EXPLORE Reader, I once saw a simple little sign in a guy’s office that said, “If you were put on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” I snorted a chuckle and moved on with my day. Strangely, I have thought about that little sign time and again…

Art Of The Deed

Handling the title policy on your new home purchase may not seem like the most emotionally intense job out there, and for many it probably isn’t. However, for Randy Allen and his team at Alamo Title of Boerne, they take the process seriously. And yes, they attempt to take what many might consider mundane and…

TAO

Back in Boerne by popular demand, the TAO Taiko Drummers will take to the stage with their latest production: Drum Heart! These internationally acclaimed percussion artists have transfixed audiences worldwide with their modern, magical, mystifying performances that are the hallmark of the ancient art of Japanese taiko drumming. This is not just your ordinary drum…

The Grapes of Wrath

“Crossroads”: A song that has inspired many a road trip in my day. Though the Eric Clapton version is a bit more upbeat, and the John Mayer version is a little smoother, there’s nothing like the original dirty, gritty vocals of Robert Johnson to stir up some serious sense of adventure. Over time, I found…

Worry Not

We all tend to worry a lot. We all do it – we worry about our jobs and our kids and our relationships and our money. We worry about war, and politics, and even the weather. Whatever it is – somebody, somewhere is actively stressed and worrying about something. It could be something global: “Man,…

From The Publisher

Dearest EXPLORE Reader, There’s just something about an old boat. It can’t be a new boat, nor even a restored boat. It must be an OLD boat. It needs weathered upholstery, and faded controls. The interior carpet should be ripped and jagged, and there simply must be random tools in random locations, and there better…

Spiritual – Patience Is A Virtue

Sometimes our vantage point provides us with a most unique angle to view human nature. Part of my job is running a local website. It’s an e-commerce platform, meaning that it is a gateway that allows people to purchase items from local businesses. Our customers are typically local folks looking to save a few bucks…

Publisher – January 2018

A long time ago, I loved fishing in this area. I’m not sure where my pursuit of fishing came from, but I spent a considerable amount of time in my high school days seeking out the finest fishing areas that this area could offer up. Sitting beside a stocked cattle pond enjoying a beautiful Saturday…

Art Of Stone Masonry

Since man had the ability to make and use tools, stonemasonry has existed. This meticulous craft of shaping rocks into precise geometrical shapes and arranging them accurately has created many historical structures that still stand today, such as the Taj Mahal and the Egyptian Pyramids. So it is no surprise when long-time Boerne resident, J.J….

10 COMMONLY BROKEN NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

January. The annual reminder that there are things we want to change about our habits, attitudes and self. We’re talking about resolutions. The time of year when gyms are packed any everyone tells themselves “THIS TIME will be different.” Unfortunately, resolutions are usually so vague, you’re all but guaranteed to fail. Here is a list…

From The Publisher

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April 30, 2018

Dearest EXPLORE Reader,

I read a lot.

In my previous life, I was a voracious reader of fiction, and had read every Stephen King book multiple times over. As I’ve gotten older, I have found that I read a lot of stuff about self-improvement. Some of it is in the printed form, and some of it is online, but of the few sites that I frequent each day, several of them are of the “self-improvement” category. I still read some fiction, but I suppose I found that the time spent “getting lost” in a book could more effectively be spent “getting lost” in myself.

I’ve learned a lot via this reading. I am by no means improved to the point that I no longer need to do self-improvement reading, but I have certainly learned enough about how I operate that I have made a lot of changes in my life for the better. For that, I am proud.

One of the things that I have read over and over, via multiple authors, is this most profound statement: BE HAPPY.

This has frustrated me to no end as I find it so overly simplistic as actually impossible to follow. As if we can all just wake up each day and go “Wow – I’m just going to be HAPPY today!” and we snap our fingers and are instantly transported to utopia. Some of the authors unpack the pursuit of happiness, and some of them outright just say “Be happy every day. No matter what. You can do it. It’s your choice.”

What about while someone in your family is dying? What about when you are in serious financial trouble? What about when one of your kids was just arrested? You expect me to believe that we can simply make a choice to be happy, and that it’s as easy as that? Bologna.

I have become so frustrated at this sentiment that I’m deciding to re-write this chapter titled “BE HAPPY” to something more realistic. Just call me Dr. Schooley.

I lost my only brother in 2013 after about a year long bout with a particularly wicked form of cancer. He was 34. Was this a happy time? Absolutely, positively not. It was grueling and heart-wrenching, and frankly, it continues to this day.

I have a friend that is broke. As in, he is so ridiculously broke financially that he literally has to worry about what he’s going to feed his kids tonight for dinner, and he’ll probably have to run by the Food Pantry for assistance. He’s behind on his rent, his car is going to be repossessed soon, and bill collectors call him day and night.

My neighbor has been dragged through divorce hell for the past few years. He has been divorced a while now, but his ex is so unbelievably hell-bent on destroying him that she is getting dangerously close to succeeding. He rarely gets to see his son, and even when he does, it comes at a tremendous emotional and financial toll, and as soon as he is able to be with his son, his ex flares up with a new accusation and he is dragged back into the blender. It’s heart-wrenching to watch a healthy loving father being emotionally ruined simply out of spite.

Of my 3 examples above, do you think that these people can wake up and throw open the curtains to the morning sun and say “What a glorious day! I think today I shall choose to be happy!” Well, yes and no I suppose.

With each of these people, there are (and were) times of happiness. And laughter. And hugs and joy and light-heartedness. Yes, my brother was dying but there were still afternoons of happiness as we spent time together. My friend that is broke still went to RANDOM with me the other day and laughed until his stomach hurt. My sad father still had a beer with me on my tailgate a few nights ago and we laughed and encouraged one another and enjoyed our time. I suppose, we were HAPPY even when we had no business being happy.

I’m not very happy right now, and I suppose that I haven’t been for the last 5 years. I’m tired and broke down and sick of the struggle that life has been. I’m not looking for pity, I’m just being honest. But while I’ve been unhappy, have I also had times of happiness? The answer is YES. I have taken the road trip and had the great meal and enjoyed great company and experienced happiness. I would hazard a guess that my other 2 friends would probably say the same.

So if we’re capable of being happy in the midst of unhappiness…could we actually make the choice to simply be happy?

Somebody told me one time that “it’s impossible to splash a little happiness around and not get some of it on yourself.” I have thought about that statement countless times over the years and I think that it contains far more truth than something as simple as “BE HAPPY.” The reality is that, as humans, there are times that we are unhappy. It could be one day, one week, or a complete decade. However, in the midst of all this unhappiness, I think that we DO have the power and strength to choose to allow happiness to find us. We all know people that just seem to miserable. 24/7/365 they just hate everything and everyone. Even when a cute kid runs by laughing, they grumble and remain miserable. This is not the person I’m talking about because I think that person simply wants to miserable and works hard to remain there. I’m talking about you and I that really, truly WANT to be HAPPY.

I know I’m probably not making any sense and I need to wrap things up anyway. I guess my point is that while I sit in my crappy little office, listening to the rain splash against the window, and with light classical music playing, I am just trying to say that life really, really sucks sometimes. But as much as it might suck, there’s far more beauty and happiness out there that we don’t enjoy because we’re so focused on the sucky part. I’m as guilty as the next person.

I’m no better at any of this as I was yesterday, but I’m at least trying to see it for what it is. I would hope that on my deathbed I won’t remember the stupid stressors and heartache I experienced, but rather, would remember my happiness and how I hopefully enjoyed a good life. My “good life” may not be as good as some, but this one is mine, and much of the work to realize the happiness falls on my shoulders.

My self-improvement continues.

Welcome to May. School is almost out, the temps are rising, and I hope that you venture out, EXPLORE, and not stop until you find all the happiness that this world has to offer.

Smiling,

Floating Texas Rivers

History – All Roads Lead

Summer Camps

Old Timer

Featured Articles

Floating Texas Rivers

History – All Roads Lead

Summer Camps

From The Publisher

Golf “Pro”

Spiritual – Strengthen What Remains

From The Publisher

Sweet Eats

From The Publisher

Art Of The Deed

TAO

The Grapes of Wrath

Worry Not

From The Publisher

Spiritual – Patience Is A Virtue

Publisher – January 2018

Art Of Stone Masonry

10 COMMONLY BROKEN NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

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