Musings of an Old Chemist

A Chemist's Perspective on the Habits and Skills STEM Students Need For Success

Tag: gratitude

  • Weekly Quotation: Sunday, June 7, 2026: Simple Acts of Kindness –  Our Service to Others

    Weekly Quotation: Sunday, June 7, 2026: Simple Acts of Kindness – Our Service to Others

    For your consideration:

    “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”

    – Muhammad Ali

    Service to others is not as difficult as it may seem at first. It may be as simple as helping your neighbor with yardwork, being there to listen and support a friend who is going through a tough time, holding a door for others, saying “thank you”, and “have a good day” when someone waits on you at the post office, the bank, or the grocery store. Or perhaps giving a small tip to the person at Walmart, Kroger’s, Lowe’s, etc., who loads your pickup order into your car. Simple acts of kindness are service to others.

    Think of the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” and how you would appreciate being treated. Every effort we make to serve others may make a difference in that someone’s day.

  • Weekly Quotation: September 10, 2025: Humility and Gratitude

    Weekly Quotation: September 10, 2025: Humility and Gratitude

    For your consideration:

    Just knowing you don’t have the answers is a recipe for humility, openness, acceptance, forgiveness, and an eagerness to learn – and those are all good things.

     – Dick Van Dyke

    Learning to be humble, to express gratitude for what you have been given, opportunities you have been offered, and for everyone who supports you, emotionally and monetarily, is essential for our journey of personal growth. It requires self-awareness, recognizing what we do not know or understand, admitting our faults and weaknesses, as well as identifying our strengths. Waking up each day seeking to be a better person than you were the day before. And, when you make mistakes, be willing to take ownership of them, seeking forgiveness where needed, and taking the lessons you learned from them to heart, striving not to repeat the same mistakes.