All That Matters

Witty, incandescent art that shakes the way you look at the world, that was the gift of composer, theatre artist, William Finn who died recently. Never heard of him? You have now.Jan celebrates the ways Finn's music and truth lifted his spirit and helped him reframe family, life, and love.

Our days can become so hectic and tension-filled, we need a shot of positivity. Besides this podcast, Jan shares suggestions from a variety of artists, designers, and writers, small ways we can each find an oasis of uplift in our daily lives.

At times we wrestle with darkness and despair. After all, it's part of life. Jan shares a personal story of a dying woman with whom he recently spent time and how she found balance and light in the lives she has touched, a hope and positivity expressed in poems he highlights on this week's podcast.

How do we use this element by which we measure life-Time? How we do brings meaning and purpose to our lives.Jan shares the precious advice his father gave him at the end of his life--a gift of love.

Those with autism can feel pressure differently than others. Jan shares the true story of two players on TV's reality show SURVIVOR, and how one person taking action to help regulate another can inspire all of us to reach beyond ourselves to help make the world more whole, bringing the healing of the human touch.

Every year several world organizations study the data to find where in the world people are the happiest and why? Jan shares the newly released latest findings and shows just how poisonous negativity can be and how powerful positivity is in changing the quality of our lives right now, today.

Recently, Monty the Giant Schnauzer won Best In Show at Westminster, the world's most renowned Dog Show. But did you know he could teach you Torah? Jan shares how one dog can inspire us to be the best version of ourselves!

Each of us wants to discover even more of the good stuff life offers. That good stuff often comes with empowerment born of wisdom gleaned from sacred wounds. Jan shares the ultimate question posed by Abraham Joshua Heschel, one that helps us see the invisible gifts right in front of us.

This past week the oldest known survivor of the Holocaust died. She was 113 years old. Jan shares the true story of Rose Girone. Her example of incredible, awe-inspiring fearless living, in the wake of the worst evil mankind can produce, is a gift and inspiration to us all.

How do we find our way when life sends struggle our way? Is there a gift we might find, if we can drain the pain?Jan shares the true story of a young girl who bravely shared her own gift born of illness and challenge and transformed her pain into a 'sacred wound.'

When we take the time to learn the rest of someone's story, it can make all the difference. Jan shares his childhood memory of broadcaster Paul Harvey and his story of a young man whose encounter with another musician would help the young boy go on to impact the music of the world.

Tuning out the chaos and madness of our daily lives, we find a tuning fork in poetry. Jan shares how his poet mother set him on a journey blessed with poems. With the words of poet David Whyte, he invites the listener to find the way back to our truest selves and the house of our own belonging.

With fear and rage all around is in social media and news headlines, Jan urges us to reframe our daily lives by asking a simple question: what's good about today? He provides a few keys as to how to find the good stuff and reminds us of key advice from Anne Frank, the Dalai Lama, and Audrey Hepburn.

How to find hope? Remembrance is a powerful tool. Jan shares the story of the creation of International Holocaust Remembrance Day taking place this week the world over, and how the children of Terezin help us remember darkness as a pathway to light."Hope is like peace. It is not a gift from God. It is a gift only we can give one another."Elie Wiesel

In a time of division and the changing of the guard in America, Jan is reminded of a brilliant poem Amanda Gorman wrote for Joe Biden's inauguration four years ago. The words are more powerful tan ever, challenging us to be brave enough to uncover the light in ourselves so needed in difficult times, in our own lives, in that of a country, and of the world.Are we brave enough to be it?

The devastation of this past week's Southern California wildfires reminds us of the fragility of life. It calls on us to resilience through our compassion and deeds. Jan shares the words of poet Marge Piercy and the power of connectivity and community as a pathway to hope.

Dickinson tells us that,"Hope is a thing with feathers..." As we begin a new year we get to allow this soft bird of hope to take flight within us. How will it manifest? Jan shares a poet's view of new beginnings for 2025.

Louis Armstrong was a true American jazz hero and ambassador of how wonderful life could be. He experienced his share of racism and saw firsthand the inhumanity of antisemitism as well. Jan shares the personal story of Satchmo's Jewish connection and his choice to wear a Star of David around his neck throughout life.

Did you ever wonder what or who inspired that hit song? Jan shares the true background behind several popular songs, considering how they grew out of relationships, as well as their aspiration to change. Each one of us is capable of rebuilding ourselves piece by piece, as we end one year and begin another.

Many can feel weighted by pressures, ills, and life's struggles, especially in the darkest time of the year. It is no coincidence that Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa take place at this time with their messages of light. Jan shares the "rest of the story" of a man, William Ernest Henley who, though ill and struggling much of his life, created a poem of empowerment that has inspired the likes of Robert Louis Stevenson, Nelson Mandela and generations after.

The movie musical has exploded on the scene with its message of how we treat the "other" in society and yet how friends can change us "for good." Jan celebrates the vision of Stephen Schwartz to turn the book into musical before a film, and how each of us can find ourselves, our better selves, in the eyes of a friend.

Four years ago in the midst of the pandemic, Jan started this podcast to share stories that reframe the way we live and look at life. It was a call for positivity in a sea of worries. This is that first podcast, a brief tale of the need to open our eyes and hearts in order to recognize the gifts that are all around us. Jan's voice has changed ever so slightly, as we all do. But the truth of the tale he shares, remains. Enjoy!

Certain individuals meet the moment and transform a game, an art, a life. We ignore the detractors and focus on the gift of such an athlete to inspire countless individuals, especially young girls. Jan shares how CC ignited his interest in women's basketball and a celebration of equal opportunity whose reality is as inevitable as this young woman's logo three-pointer.

There are moments following a loss where purpose dwindles and the future seems hazy. Some speak of it after a death, others after an election or a divorce or a heartbreak. Jan shares the story of a woman who experienced the worst of humanity's evil and personal loss. Impossibly, she was the brightest spirit he ever encountered. She taught him: "Don't die before you're dead."

Sometimes we need to exhale an old version of ourselves and inhale a new "me." Jan shares the story of Pharrell Williams meeting singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers in a classroom on music and the unique philosophy of creativity he espouses to the class that makes us all unique.

Robert Frost's poem Nothing Gold Can Stay challenges us to consider what is permanent and what is not in life. Jan shares his recent personal experience with the new musical The Outsiders on Broadway and how a character's dying words quoting Frost illuminate the ongoing power of finding what truly matters.

Jan shares how his life intersected twice with the Nobel Peace Prize Recipient/noted author, Elie Wiesel, and the lesson Wiesel taught that can inspire each of us to live life as it could be.

The world is in dire need of stories that show how some people have met war and devastation with hope. The folding of origami cranes is said to bring the granting of a wish, for life, for recovery. Jan shares the story of a little girl named Sadako and a lesson of love and art to lift us all.

It is the week of the Jewish holiday, Sukkot, a harvest festival, sending out wishes to the world that all might have enough to eat and a place to live. A time for counting blessings and fostering hope. Jan shares the remarkable story of his meeting a muslim inside a dwelling built for this Jewish holiday and the power each of us can draw from connection.

This week is the one year anniversary of the terrorist attack on innocent families in kibbutzim and at the Youth Dance Festival in Israel. That violence began a cycle of loss of life on all sides. This year's anniversary is a day of memorial and silence, one that can lead to reclaiming what is most important about our lives and being true to our own values- a time of clarity and healing, of focusing on blessings we possess and those we can yet make real.

At the changing of the seasons we feel change calling us. Jan shares two poems that speak to blessings in front of us if we will simply lift our heads and risk seeing, we will uncover possibility and miracles of humanity. In the words of Rachel Goldberg-Polin, mother of Hirsch, "Hope Is Not Optional."

In moments of tragedy, we are called on to seek light. Jan shares the true story of 24 year-old Gili Adar who perished nearly a year ago, struck down by terrorists in a moment of dance. Her parents show us how essential it is that we remember, but more, they call on us to find 'slivers of joy' each day and to share them with one another. In such a way, we honor memories and create new light.

Being the first at anything, breaking long-held barriers, takes perseverance, audacity, and quiet determination. It also takes an ability NOT to take NO for an answer.Jan shares the story of Robin Herman, who helped lead a change in the reporting of Sports that helped transform the industry, and open doors for others, and that matters..

As some of you may know, as a young boy Jan met Maria Von Trapp on a visit to Stowe with his grandmother. Over the his formative years, she gave him a gift that has stood the test of time, one that can empower each of us to rediscover wonder and our own authenticity.

We know about Thoreau and Walden. Who knew his writing contained poetic ways of seeing the inner world of the mind and the heart? Jan shares the story of Thoreau's personal relationship with his mentor's wife and how it led him to discover that connecting to another human being can be a way to "splice the heavens?"

Sometimes, like the singer, Pink's, daughter, we feel ugly. We all have days like that. Jan shares with us not only Pink's words to her little girl, but ways to claim the perfect day, and rediscover love, beginning with ourselves.

Jan shares the true story of his involvement as a teenager in an ecumenical summer camp where he learned a lifelong lesson about Judaism from a big bear of a man, an Irish-American priest, Father Bill. It is a gift we all can share in today if we wish to create bridges of blessing within ourselves and for others..

Success comes in many cycles of life. Perhaps we recognize in the genius of others our own rejected thoughts. Jan shares a view of embracing the first step of our next success and calming the positive first step only we can take.

Part of reframing a world challenged by divisions and disunity is in tapping into our own resilience. Jan shares a long ago recording of his mother whose yahrzeit he and his family commemorate this week. Here, his mom, a celebrated poet in her day, shares one of her poems about reclaiming the possibility of life. Here's to discovering and rediscovering our own song of resilience!

We are all primed to go far in life, each in our own way, but to do that, at times, we must first find our way home. Jan shares the true story of his mother's Alzheimer's, her poetry, and the inspiration for his LA Times bestselling second novel of a mother and a son and the meaning of art.

Did you know that poetry and painting were once Olympic sports? On the eve of the Olympic Games in Paris this summer of 2024, Jan shares the story of when the games celebrated the arts, lifting the mind as well as the body, and ways we each can "medal" in that every day of our lives.

Jan shares a chance encounter with a talented filmmaker and is reminded of the power of taking a second look, not just at films that make a difference, but at encounters with people and circumstances that can deepen us and lead us to an opportunity to repair and grow.

We often hear people talk about what's wrong with the world. Jan shares the story and words of a photographer who turns that on its ear, focusing on what's right, in our lives and that of others. There is a lift and balance, he suggests, if we follow that positive example.

Recently, Jan was asked to place on a gravestone 13 words to sum up the life of a loved one. It got him thinking, what 13 words would each of us choose for ourselves when that day comes? And, then, another thought...what 13 words would each of us choose to describe ourselves right now, today?

Art can heal and illuminate. This we know. But the recent performance of King Lear by Ukrainian amateur actors in Shakespeare's hometown in England, inspires us all to know that anything is possible!

Retelling a story of his dad and late brother, Mark, Jan celebrates the incomparable love and gifts that they gave him, and calls on all of us to cherish the possibility of discovering light in the darkness.Dedicated to Mark's daughter, Jan's niece: Happy graduation day, Amanda!

The 80th Anniversary of D-Day. Jan meets 6 veterans flying to Normandy and shares how their story is a reminder to each of us that we can grow into our worthiness of all they did and the gifts they gave us.

Come with Jan to a small village on the Beira Peninsula of Ireland, where he learns the power of community and connection. See if you hear the ring of a phone during the podcast. Mystically, it was a call from Ireland! Raise a pint!

Poet-Philosopher David Whyte points us to insightful and clarifying questions that can empower the lives we're living, and, as Jan shares with us, those we have yet to live.

Jan shares a reprise of an episode recorded during the pandemic. It's the story of a remarkable couple whose dreams were dashed and then reborn. Come meet Rick and Sarah and their discovery of hope.

If you could capture any image that represents your life, what would it be? Jan shares a reprise of the triumphant conclusion to one of the most inspiring individuals he has ever known, a man who experienced the worst that humanity had to offer, and gave back the best.