The Collective Misery of the Americans and How to Cure It. Part 1.

I penned this article for The Three Tomatoes because I think there is nothing more urgent than helping people find their true selves, and through that - a meaningful pursuit.

Rainer Maria Rilke, the revered Prague-born poet and heart’s philosopher, who died at 51 of leukemia, wrote in his Letters to a Young Poet on how to live one’s life: Don’t seek answers. Live the questions.

Do you have a favorite question?

• Mine is:

  • How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were? (My answer is 36).

• My own recurring statement for 30+ years of living in New York City:

  • The Americans are always worried about the wrong problems. I’ll explain later with examples.

• My favorite Russian sayings, having grown up in St. Petersburg:

  • The eyes are afraid, but the hands are doing the work.

  • We plan, but God re-plans.

• My favorite phrases in the Dominican Republic, where I live part time, in Cabarete:

  • Vamos a ver. (We shall see.)

  • How are the waves today?

    Continue reading here.