The Good News of a Smile

From CNN, to MSNBC, and of course, Fox News, most of what we see on the news is bad news. One need only watch a random period of five minutes, and rest assured, you’ll likely end up feeling down, depressed or downright angry. So, what does this everpresent drumbeat of bad news do to the psyche, soul or even your outlook on life, your daily mantra? Well, it can have a damaging effect on how you look at the world, yourself and all those around you.

Now, you may ask, what can I do to counter this online, network driven, omnipresent availability of bad news

Well, the answer is simple, you look for a smile.

This isn’t to negate what’s out there, or have us put our heads in the sand and try to wish the bad news away. On the contrary, when we find ourselves increasingly depressed, discouraged and emotionally downtrodden, it can have a limiting effect on our capacity to effect change in the world, to even believe that change is possible. And without that energy, that focus, or even that tinge of optimism, it becomes difficult to take a first step toward creating good news.

Again, find a smile.

So, here’s the good news; Smiles are Everywhere! Get up, get out the house and go somewhere. The park, the street, the mall, the beach, the grocery store and rest assured you’ll find a smile. Sure, not everyone is smiling, but they’re out there. And almost always you’ll be able to find a smile on the face of a child, or a new parent. When you see these smiles just appreciate them. Don’t analyze or contemplate what they mean, just embrace the smile and the fact that there are moments of joy and elation that each of us experience for an endless array of reasons.

And last but not least, finish reading this post, get up off the couch, or from behind the desk and give someone a smile. After all, it’s very good news.

Doctor of Good News
*oh and if that doesn’t make you smile, watch this video. Trust me, you’ll smile. But first, riddle me this, is a jeri curl good news?.

Good News is a Newborn Baby

So THIS is what all the fuss is about. Yep, Good News is a newborn baby! You guessed it the Doctor of

A Bundle of Good News

Good News is now the Daddy of Good News. And in one fell swoop I have a bouncing, screaming, staring, loving, pooping, peeing and crying example of the best news of all; the Good News of a newborn baby!

I look at this bundle of good news and see not only the purity that we are all born with, but also a glimpse of this within all whom I meet. After all, we were all bundles of good news from our very first breath.

Now I look at my bundle of good news and realize that as a father I have an opportunity to guide, influence and be a witness to her development as a child and then as a participant in this adventure that we call life. And it’s this opportunity that fathers, mothers, caregivers and grandparents often make the most of. Knowing that each moment of an infant’s life is filled with what is put before them. As infants they cannot venture out into the world. They cannot turn the channel, tune out unwanted sounds, or close their eyes at the sight of unhealthy interactions. No, we determine what we will provide for them through sight, sound, taste and most of all through emotional enrichment.

As a new father I step back and realize that it is my role to pave the way for my daughter’s first steps and

Get Ready for More Good News!

now recognize that I must provide a path toward a life where she recognizes the good news within herself and ultimately within others. My partner in this adventure is my wife of good news and together our goal is to cull through the experiences of our own childhood and provide our daughter with the best of what we experienced as children, while discarding those experiences our parents provided that were less than ideal. And maybe even pulling out some aspects of our past and revising them before presenting them to our bundle of good news.

Yes, Good News is a Newborn Baby and of equal importance is the good news of a parent or caregiver willing to step up to this opportunity. Not a challenge, but a true opportunity.

The Suggestion of Good News is simple: Provide your bundles of good news with warmth, smiles and positive attention realizing that as parents we are the ones who are their world. We are the ones who determine if they will look at their world and themselves with apprehension, or with hope. Their outlook is influenced by ours. Be proud of your child, be proud of what you’ve accomplished as a parent or caregiver and let your child know through and through that they are Good News and that there’s even more on the way!

Doctor (and now Daddy) of Good News

No TV is Good News!

In February 2009, the FCC will mandate that all analog television be broadcast via a high definitions signals (HDTV). There are a wealth of resources to help “prepare the family” for such a monumental adjustment. But my solution is simple, simply TURN OFF THE TV! Now THAT’s some Good News!

Yes, turn off the HDTV and turn on the highest definition of all, LIFE. Study after study has shown that it is impossible to multi-task when it comes to watching t.v. and doing such things as completing homework, settling bills, and most of all, developing real world social skills and bonding with your own children.
That being said, here’s the task, once a month have a self-imposed blackout. Simply put, turn off the t.v and turn on a level of creativity, connection and personality that Sony, Samsung and Panasonic never knew existed.

“But I just bought a new 63 inch HDTV! Now what?”, you may ask. Well, don’t worry. After all, the best part of that purchase is the box the HDTV came in. Yes, the box itself. Go get your kids and make a fort, a castle, a boat or a car. Or challenge networks and make a pretend t.v. Yes, it may seem very Romper Roomish at best, but trust the Doctor of Good News, your kids will remember this, far longer than a Member’s Only-laced episode of Silver Spoons.

Yes, good news is NO T.V. Try it out once a week and watch how quickly these t.v.-less days, become those that are richer than any internet connection could every bring you. Nothing is more high def, than the true definition of life. Real flowers smell better than h.d. flowers, laughter that surrounds you is more enriching that wire-driven surround sound, and your own life is far richer and more wonderful than any of the endless families on “reality” t.v.

MTV can wait, CNN, Telemundo, CBS and most of all Fox News can all wait. The true definitoin of life is there for the taking. Just click it off and let the highest definition of who you are slowly rise to the surface. Turn off the T.V. and turn your life on!

The Doctor (and now, Daddy) of Good News

The Good News of High Gas Prices

Well, sometimes it takes a long time for good news to show up.  And with gas soon approaching 6 dollars a gallon one must adopt an optimistic “wait and see” approach.  But the Doctor of Good News is clearly looking for the silver lining to this oil soaked mess we find ourselves in.  Yes, I’m aware that the high cost of oil is having a drastic effect on all things; food, employment, basic necessities.  Without question, a difficult transition.
But I can’t help but wonder if down the line there could be some good news that emerges from this.  And, not surprisingly, I was able to find some good news.  It’s as simple as this; for some time we’ve indulged in an excess of consumption.  True, we love our SUV’s, and each of our “have to haves”, a.k.a., HTH, but within a matter of months many of us are realizing that our HTH’s, are not really that necessary, and at times just an extension of us trying to “keep up with the Joneses” a.k.a., KUWTJ. 

The long and short of it is this, as we toss aside our HTH’s and no longer try to KUWTJ, after all the Jones’ family had to trade their Excursion in for a Prius, we quickly realize that we don’t need as much as we once thought.  And though many weren’t inspired to change by some epiphany of environmental empathy, the end result could be the same.  The end result could be a greater connection that each of us have to the environment.  The good news could be seeing that the insight of environmentalists was not just another hippie-based rant, but rather one founded on fact, reason and a patient warning of what could lie ahead.

We’ve been given an abrupt wake-up call and thankfully many of us are heeding this, the Doctor of Good News included.  I’ve begun to look at hypermiling and months ago tossed aside my SUV for a high mileage four cylinder.  Baby steps, yes, but steps that are much gentler on the road toward a smaller carbon footprint. 

So, as the gas prices escalate, somewhere we must find a way to make the most of it.  Sure we can protest, and yes it hurts us all, some far more than others, but let’s make sure we retain this lesson, etch it in our minds and pass it on to our children.  Drive less, think more and find a way to make the most of this for yourself and all those around you.   

The Doctor of Good News

The Good News of a Dad

In less than a couple days the Doctor of Good News is going to be the Daddy of Good News. Yep, soon, very soon, I’ll become a Daddy for the first time. And just in time for Father’s Day. Yet, throughout this process I reflect on not only what it means to be a Dad, but also what my father has meant to me throughout my life. And I keep coming back to the simple phrase, “Thank you.”This Father’s Day will be the first without him and although there are a myriad of feelings that accompany me, the vast majority are those bringing comfort, hope, laughter and appreciation. Yes, Dads are Good News. And this Father’s Day I’ll be one, all the while thanking my father for working to instill core values, beliefs and traditions that I will pass on to my little one.

Yes, I miss Dad, but his presence in my life now in many ways is richer than it was when he was here. This Father’s Day will be absent one phone call and one card to mail out, but it will still be a good day. And likely one of the best ever. Thanks to who you may ask? Well, thanks to Dad of course?

Happy Father’s Day dad, and to all the Dads out there.

Yes, Dads are Good News

Doctor of Good News

Good News is a Dream Realized

I find myself wonderfully struggling to understand what it means to have a Black man as the Democratic nominee for the President of the United States. I grew up in a time when such a thing was perceived as “nonsense” or that America was not ready, nor would we ever be ready. Yet, here we are. For years as a Black man I found a balance between optimism and what I thought was a more “realistic” stance.

And maybe that’s where the “dream” begins to make sense. Dreams are often perceived as the unconscious detours into a world where fantasy and reality never meet. Yet, all dreams are based on reality. Not just a reality of what exists in the world, but also what we know can exist. And here we are.

June 3, 2008 and we have a dream that is realized. A dream that is as real as the keyboard my fingers continue to dance across. Each stroke a soft pinch to reality. Yes, this is an accomplishment that transcends race, class, and gender. It is an accomplishment that confirms that hope is not futile, but a fuel that drives us all. Rarely do we realize the outcome, but today we have.

No, we cannot rest on the laurels of one political campaign drawing to a close. This is just the beginning. But it is the beginning of a journey that many are now willing to travel on. Not toward a utopian society, for that is a dream that will never be realized. But at least we are one step closer to something better. Something that confirms that our childish dreams of becoming President, or countless meanderings into all the what-if’s. There is now the possibility that something can happen. That our country can take reluctant steps toward something better, always realizing that we are a part of this process. Always have been, always will be.

The only difference now is that we now realize that although our passivity impacts how we live, our active participation has an even greater effect in how we, and millions of others live. Cherish this moment. It is the epitome of good news. Yes, Good News is a dream that is realized.

Below is an extended clip of the King’s speech. One that has been condensed into a catchphrase, but in its entirety one comes to realize the depth of its meaning and how it resonates with every American today and ideally, for years to come. Keep dreaming America, one day you may wake up and realize that dreams do come true.

Doctor of Good News

My Dad Knows I Can!

Hard to believe that a field of asphalt served as an inspiration of fatherhood, yet it did.

Yes, earlier today I found Good News in an empty parking lot. Of all places, a parking lot was inspiring. Exiting my car I couldn’t help but watch a father take a tubular chrome stroller out of the trunk of his car. A minute goes by and then he lifts his three year old son out. My gut reaction was to think it odd that a father would lift a child this size out of the car. After all, on the surface all looked quite normal. But I was rapidly humbled, and soon inspired when realizing that what I thought was a stroller was actually an aid that was teaching his son to walk.

The father informed his son that the asphalt was rougher than other paths they’d been on, but still he encouraged him. His son’s legs spindly and weak, but his eyes proud and looking up at his father with the look of a child about to jump into the pool into his father’s arms. The father says, “Can you do it? It’s a bit rougher this time.” But father finds a way to offer it as a challenge he knows his son can overcome. About three minutes go by and the child has moved a little over five feet over the rough asphalt.

A little discouragement arises and the child states, “I’m ready to go back.” Upon which the father replies, “You sure?” No response from the child as a delayed and soft smile returns, eyes gazing four feet ahead of him. Step by step, with the wheels slowly and awkwardly rumbling over the cracked blacktop.

A little over five feet. Then, I had to go. As I walked away I couldn’t help but look back at this amazing marathon unfold. The father not far from the car he and his son arrived in. The son about three feet from the car still moving forward, ever so deliberately, patiently, confidently.

A little over five feet, but in the father’s eyes and clearly in his voice it is a long journey they’ve completed. Clearly there will be more challenges for this child, but he has a father, a coach and a friend who will always be there at the finish line for him. A finish line that he will always cross and one that he will internalize for years to come.

Yes, Good News is always there. And believe it or not, you can even find it in a field of asphalt.

Doctor of Good News

The Psychology of Good News

The difference between can and cannot are only three letters. Three letters that determine your life’s direction.  Being positive or negative are habits of thoughts that have a very strong influence on life.
Positive and negative are directions.

Which direction do you choose?

Positive thinking is expecting, talking and visualizing with certainty what you want to achieve, as an accomplished fact.  Riches, mediocrity and poverty begin in the mind.  Reality is the mirror of your thoughts. Choose well what you put in front of the mirror.  The mind is the decisive factor in your life, but who decides for the mind?  A positive attitude brings strength, energy and initiative.

To think negatively is like taking a weakening drug.

Good stuff, huh?  Found this on a google search of “positive psychology”.  Well, give it a shot.  Think positive, oh and then get up and do something about it!

Doctor of Good News

Wheelchair Backflip? That’s some GOOD NEWS!

This one is short and sweet! Courage and inspiration is good news. So, the next time you feel like you don’t have the energy, or you just can’t get motivated, just watch this video.

Hey Oprah! Get this kid on your show as he could inspire millions. Have fun with this one.

The Doctor of Good News

Progress is Good News

Funny thing. Amidst all the chaos that is the current Democratic process, we mustn’t lose sight of one amazing fact. To put it in it proper context, less than 40 years ago women like Gloria Steinam and Bella Abzug were viewed as “radical” amongst much of mainstream America, and the mere thought of a Black man as president, well that was unheard of. So much so, that it was fodder for comedians and was even a controversial movie starring ol’ Anakin Skywalker himself, James Earl Jones (check it out below).

Nevertheless, on the heels of the 40th anniversary of Dr. King’s death, and pundits of all colors and at polar opposites arguing over how much progress has been made. Then, almost as if sneaking in the back door we have either a woman, or a Black man as the next president. Not as a joke, a skit or a “would you believe” question posed at a barbershop. But it is happening and we are here.

Suffice to say, we are not “there” yet, but has our country finally gotten to a place where race and color are secondary to the economic realities that we all face. Whether the next president is Black or White has no impact on the education of our children, the security of our homes or the stability of our finances. Whether by concession, or a realization that the old way wasn’t working, our nation has put race aside for what is in the best interest of ourselves, our country and our world.

Yes, buckle up, it’s going to be a bumpy ride for the next month or so, but the road should be a heckuvva lot smoother than the past eight years. Yes, the good news is here, with more on it’s way. And with that, we must say thanks to Dr. King and the millions of like minded Good News folks for giving us a kickstart that continues to keep our collective motor running for the past 50 years and many, many more to come.

Doctor of Good News