‘The Spiral of Creation: the natural path from wish to reality’ is an exceptionally practical book written by Marinus Knoope. In it, he describes the twelve steps to follow if you want to turn your wishes into reality. It’s a simple, compact model and it never ceases to amaze me how relatively … Read full story
Just imagine this: you have everything you could want. A fine house, more than enough money, holidays whenever you want to take them, good health, etc. But you don’t have anybody to share these with. Can you still be happy? Not according to the American social psychologist Roy Baumeister. His research leads him … Read full story
The film ‘Billy Elliot’ (2000) is set in the 1980s in a poverty-stricken mining village in the north of England. The story revolves around an 11-year-old boy living with his no-nonsense father, rebellious brother and a grandmother suffering from dementia. His father has enrolled him for boxing lessons even though he has … Read full story
Two years ago I had a rather nasty experience. While I was bringing my two eldest children home, I suddenly started getting palpitations, stabbing chest pains and could hardly breathe. Now and then I would be able to breathe normally but the next minute I was gasping for breath. I was convinced: … Read full story
What do you stand for? What’s really important to you? What do you believe in? What is your goal in life? Not only are these kinds of questions difficult to answer, we often don’t take time even to consider them. And that’s rather strange because the answers to these questions give purpose … Read full story
I get so much pleasure from seeing people making the most of their talents rather than being intimidated by them. Especially when they express their dreams and desires without feeling guilty about it (and not giving in to the people who constantly tell them to ‘just act normal that’s crazy enough’). Being … Read full story
I recently took part in a conference organised by a Dutch Foundation for Kinship Questions. The aim of the foundation is to break the taboo surrounding the topic of special family situations and to get people talking more about it. Examples of such special situations include children born as a result of … Read full story
