I recently stumbled upon the eulogy I wrote for my father, Bob Banta, in 2007. I feel so fortunate to FEEL the presence, the essence and light of my father within myself as I write and when I choose and move throughout my day. We are the sum of our many parts, and a most [...]
I had a chat with a friend recently declaring emphatically, as I’m known to do, that I wanted to embrace a more expansive, less frenetic approach toward my world. Sidenote: this is not the sort of exclamation you share with just ANY friend, but the kind of friend who won’t immediately laugh until tears run [...]
I love to laugh. My mother and I could make each other laugh as big as anyone! She was just FUNNY. Her world view, despite a tremendous amount of adversity, was one where her glass was infinitely full, until it wasn't and then she left the planet. I hope to leave as swiftly if my [...]
I’m the first one to admit, I’m a flawed human being. With the passing of years, I know inside myself I am a good, loving and well meaning individual. I don’t dwell on the negative, though when I have a learning curve, I address it my way and in my time. This makes me not [...]
Sitting high above the clouds on an immense plane headed far east to Shanghai, realizing the difficulty of spending 14 hour enroute with no technical devices to contact my work or friends, I twitch and turn with issues heavy on my mind. With the weight of several life changing events on my soul, I consider [...]
This has been my brave week of letting go ‘things’ I love dearly. I learned on Tuesday that my nearly 13 year old ‘pup’s’ distended belly was not weight gain, but a malignant tumor. Worse, the compassionate gesture was to let him go to the Angels. My grief hit me like a canon ball to [...]
Let’s face it, relationships are where we learn the MOST about ourselves. My mother shared a four word phrase with me at a young age. ‘You might be right,’ has served me for decades. Having completed my 362 mile cycling trek from Pittsburgh to Washington D. C., I came away with more than stronger muscles [...]
I was asked to report on a cycling event I participated in....our usual reporter of events, sharing who was there, highlights of the ride, etc., was unable to attend. This cycling thing...is much, MUCH bigger than THE BIKE!! For sure! Okay Jim, here's my summary of a very, very good ride and day! 1 Can [...]
Being a driven personality can be misleading to folks looking in from the outside. I have a lot happening in my life at all times, (as no doubt do MOST of us), but I’m finding a new core to it all that has a different sort of rhyme and reason. I’m enthralled to say that [...]
…LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL How you wonder, at times, when areas of life pull you inward making you feel like a festered knot, a trembling leaf or a forgotten or fallen star. We all need love and we all need to feel seen or witnessed as the brilliant beings we ALL are, in one [...]