April is just around the corner. And if you think April is only for April Fool's Day and Easter which, incidentally, fall on the same day this year, you'd be very much mistaken. Take a look at all the other super fun and worthwhile days you can celebrate all month long!
APRIL CALENDAR OF SPECIAL DAYS
1. Easter, April Fool's Day, National One Cent Day, Poetry and Creative Minds Day, Saint Stupid Day
2. National Ferret Day, National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, National Reconciliation Day, International Children's Book Day
3. National  Film Score Day, World Party Day. National Find a Rainbow Day, National Tweed Day, Don't Go to Work Unless It's Fun Day
4.  National Hug a Newsperson Day, National School Librarian Day, National Walk Around Things, Childhelp National Day of Hope, World Rat Day
5.  National Caramel Day, National Go For Broke Day, National Read a Road Map Day
6.  Walk to Work Day, National Sorry Charlie Day, National Student Athlete Day, National Teflon Day
7. National Girl Me Too Day, National Handmade Day, National No Housework Day, National Love Our Children Day, World Health Day, International Pillow Fight Day
8.  National All Is Ours Day, Buddha Day, Trading Cards For Grown-Ups Day, Draw a Bird Day
​9.  National Cherish An Antique Day, Jumbo Day, National Name Yourself Day
10. National Encourage a Young Writer Day, National Farm Animals Day, National Siblings Day, National Equal Pay Day, Be Kind To Lawyers Day, Library Day
11. National Barbershop Quartet Day, National Eight Track Tape Day, National Pet Day, National Bookmobile Day
12. National Big Wind Day, National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day, Walk On Your Wild Side Day
13.  National Make Lunch Count Day, National Scrabble Day, National Blame Someone Else Day, National Donate Life Blue And Green Day, 
14. International Moment of Laughter Day, National Gardening Day, National Reach As High As You Can Day, Dolphin Day, Slow Art Day
​15. National Rubber Eraser Day, National Take a Wild Guess Day, National Taxi Day, National Titanic Remembrance Day, World Art Day (Leonardo da Vinci's Birthday)
16.  National Orchid Day, National Bean Counter Day, National Healthcare Decisions Day, National Wear Your Pajamas To Work Day, Save The Elephant Day
17. Bat Appreciation Day, National Ellis Island Family History Day, National Haiku Poetry Day, Herbalist Day, Blah, Blah Blah Day
18. National Animal Crackers Day, National Linemen Appreciation Day, Amateur Radio Day
19. National Garlic Day, National Hanging Out Day, National High Five Day, National Bicycle Day
20.  National Lima Bean Respect Day, National Look Alike Day, Day of Silence, Chinese Language Day 
21.  National Kindergarten Day, National Record Store Day, Bulldogs are Beautiful Day
22.  Earth day, National Girl Scouts Day, National Jelly Bean Day, Dance Day, Global Selfie Day
23.  National Lost Dog Awareness Day, National Picnic Day, National Take a Chance Day, National Talk Like Shakespeare Day, Movie Theater Day, English Muffin Day
24.  National Pigs In a Blanket Day, National Teach Children To Save Day
25.  National DNA Day, National East Meets West Day, National Hug a Plumber Day, National Telephone Day, International Macaroni Day, License Plates Day, Golf Day
26.  National Audubon Day, National Kids And Pets Day, National Help a Horse Day, National Pretzel Day, National Richter Scale Day, National take Our Sons And Daughters To Work Day
27.  National Devil Dog Day, National Babe Ruth Day, National Tell a Story Day, National Arbor Day, National Hairball Awareness Day, Denim Day, Little Pampered Dog Day, Morse Code Day
28.  National Kiss Of Hope Day, National Bravehearts Day, National Great Poetry Reading Day, Superhero Day, Save The Frogs Day, Eeyore's Birthday, Sense Of Smell Day, World Veterinarian Day
29.  National Zipper Day, National Pet Parents Day, World Wish Day, International dance Day
30.  Bugs Bunny Day, Honesty Day, International Jazz Day, National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day, National Hairstylist Appreciation Day
Is that a LONG list of things to celebrate, or what? If I were to celebrate everything I wanted to, why I'd have no time to do anything else! And I'd go broke, besides. But, i will narrow down my list to a reason number, then hop off to the Lily Pad Party Store for all my supplies. I wish you all a Hoppy Easter and an Egg-sta special weekend. See y'all back here on Monday!

This is Easter weekend, one of the most holy times in Christianity. But it is also the holiday where we get to celebrate spring and the rebirth of, well, everything! While Easter can be a solemn time, it is also a joyful time...full of new life and new opportunities for growth. I recently ran across a few fun and interesting facts that I thought I'd share with you today, just to get your Easter weekend off on the right flipper...or foot, which is your case.
1. In 2007, an egg covered in diamonds sold for almost 9 million pounds ($12,658,770 US). The egg is special because every hour, a cockerel made of jewels pops up from top of the egg, flaps its wings four times, nods it head three times, and makes a crowing noise. Now that's a very special Easter egg!
2.  The tallest Easter egg was made in 2011 in Italy. The egg stood 10.39 meters high (34.087 feet) and weighed 7,200 kilograms...15,873.28 pounds! It stood taller than a giraffe and was heavier than an elephant!
3.  The Easter Bunny tradition made its way to the US in the 18th century. It is believed to have come from Europe where it was called the Easter Hare.  
4.  Jelly Beans were first manufactured in America by Boston candy maker William Schrafft. He ran advertisements urging people to send jelly beans to soldiers fighting in the Civil War. Who knew?
5.  And speaking of jelly beans, Americans consume over 16 million jelly beans on Easter. That's enough to circle the globe three times over!
6.  The traditional act of painting eggs is called Pysanka, which originated in the Ukraine. It involves using wax and dyes to color Easter eggs.
7.  The name Easter owes it's origins to Eastre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess who symbolizes the hare  and egg.
8.  The exchange of eggs at Easter is a springtime tradition that dates back before Easter itself. In spring, eggs were given as a symbol of rebirth in many cultures.
9.  In olden days, the pretzel (yep, the humble pretzel) was associated with Easter. The twists of the pretzel was thought tom resemble arms crossing in prayer.
​10. Americans purchase more than 700 million marshmallow peeps during the Easter holiday, making it the most popular non-chocolate Easter candy.
11. Next to Halloween, Easter is the biggest candy-consuming holiday of the year.
12. 76% of people say they eat the ears on their chocolate Easter bunny first.
13. 90 million chocolate bunnies and 91.4 billion candy eggs are produced in the US each Easter season.
14. The average household spends $131 a year on Easter, or $14.7 billion in total.
15. Easter is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important day of the church year.
I hope you've enjoyed these interesting Easter facts. Perhaps, like me, you've learned a few new things. I'll be back here tomorrow with your April Calendar of Special Days. Until then, I wish you all
​                                                     Peace (and lots of chocolate!)

One of the things I like best about this time of year is the fact that it gets light so much earlier in the mornings. This morning I was up and at 'em before the roosters and had breakfast ready and waiting when my friend and teacher Dharma Frog arrived for my weekly lesson.
As soon as he hopped onto my lily pad, we ate our morning repast and chatted about the past week. When the meal was over, as we sipped our tea, Dharma asked me, "Son, have you ever experienced a time when things weren't going well and you had to make some sort of a big decision?" "Yes, Sir," I replied, "I think that happens to all of us at one time or another. I hate when that happens, though. Making important decisions during difficult times just adds insult to injury...ya know what I mean?" "I do, Tadpole, and that is what this weeks lesson is all about.  A frog must have the patience to wait until his personal mud settles and the water is clear, before making big and important decisions. Humans might say, 'wait until the dust settles,' but the idea behind it is the same. Son, life is like a snow globe. Occasionally, life gets shaken up by unforeseen circumstances. And when the "snow" starts swirling around, it can make it difficult to see the beauty of what's really there. But if we wait and let the snow, or dust, or mud settle first, we can see that life is still beautiful."
Dharma reminded me that it can take personal restraint not to rush headlong into a decision when life isn't running smoothly. Sometimes a decision must be made quickly, and when those times do arise, it's best to make those decisions from your heart...what you believe is the right thing to do. But if it isn't an emergency then it's best to take some time, letting your personal mud, dust, or snow settle down and then reassess the situation from a place of clarity. Often humans and we frogs, as well, don't take the time to give ourselves the gift of letting our minds settle down and see what insights come to us. "Irwin, my boy, difficulty is often our best teacher. If we can have patience long enough to let our mud settle, we  can learn a great deal from our problems for they are how we grow and gain wisdom." It is never a good idea to make decisions in the heat of the moment. Those are most often the decisions we regret most.
When Dharma had left, and as I was cleaning up my kitchen, I thought about some of the spur-of-the-moment decisions I've made. And of course, Dharma is right. Those quick decisions, made under the stress of a difficult situation, are ones certainly those among my worst ones. But hindsight is 20/20, so they say. And I like to think I've learned to wait until the snow, or mud, settles down to make decisions that could affect me and those I love in an adverse way. Until tomorrow, Dharma and I wish you, Peace, Love, and Clarity.

You can't read a newspaper or turn on the news these days without getting hit in the face with bad news. It can seem like the whole world's about to implode. So I'm here today to share with you a little good news. I recently ran across five psychological studies that will you feel good about humanity.
The first study:  Believe it or not, most humans want to help each other, not shoot them or blow them up. I know! Kinda hard to believe, but it's true. When people express gratitude for what they have, they tend to pay it forward by helping others. A study conducted by Northeastern University has found that people really do want to pay it forward when someone else helps them.  And the reason is that they feel grateful. When we, humans and frogs alike, feel grateful for the kindness of others, it motivates us to want to help someone else.
The second study:  When humans do help others, they feel happier. Psychologist Elizabeth Dunn, and her colleagues gave each study participant $5.00 to spend as they wished. There was one small catch, however, half of the participants had to spend the money on themselves while the other half had to spend it on someone else. When the researchers followed up with them the next day, they found that those who spent their $5.00 on someone else felt happier than those who spent it on themselves. Generosity makes both the giver, and the receiver feel good!
The third study:  Carol Ryoff, a psychologist known for her work in eudaimonic well-being, the sense that life has purpose and meaning, published a report in 2015 that proved this theory is true. Those study participants who spent more time helping others reported having feeling their lives had a greater purpose and meaning. That same study also showed that participants who wrote a letter of gratitude to someone who was important to them also experienced a greater sense of purpose. They felt as if their lives had real meaning. "This research shows that taking time to help another person or express gratitude to someone else can actually make life more meaningful."
The fourth study:  Supporting or helping others is linked to a longer life. it's been thought that helping others lead to a longer life. Psychologist Stephanie Brown and her colleagues set out to see if this was true. They asked their study participants how much time they spent helping others (a friend, neighbor, babysitting, etc). Over the next five years, she found that those participants who spent the most time helping others had the lowest risk of mortality. As it turned out, those who helped make other's lives better actually ended up supporting their own in the process.  In 2013 one-quarter of American adults volunteered, and most adults spent time informally helping someone they knew.
The fifth (and final) study:  It's possible to become more empathetic. Stanford University's Carol Dweck has conducted a wide range of studies on people's mindsets. This includes "growth mindset", the belief that they can improve at something with effort and the "fixed mindset", those who think that their abilities are relatively unchangeable. What she found is that the mindset of the individual became self-fulfilling, whichever one they believed. Believe it or not, empathy is one of those things that humans (and we frogs, too) can improve if we believe it can be (the"growth mindset"). How empathetic a person thinks they are, determines how empathetic they actually are. You are what you think. That's good news! Empathy isn't something that only a few humans and frogs have the capacity for. In reality, we ALL have the ability to become more empathetic. 
If we listen to the news, it's easy to get discouraged; to give up on humanity. But the daily news doesn't paint an accurate picture of the real world. Charles Schultz, the beloved creator of the Peanuts comic strip once said, "I love mankind...it's people I can't stand." But these five studies suggest otherwise. It IS possible to love mankind, as well as all the individuals who make it up. Until tomorrow, I wish you
                                                                        Peace

The sun is shining higher in the sky. We have more daylight hours. The birds are singing and the flowers are starting to bloom. Welcome to the first full week of spring! With more sunshine around these days, I thought it might be kind of fun to take a look at some interesting facts about that big, yellow ball in the sky.
The sun is the central source of light and heat in this solar system. Since the beginning of humans, the sun has also been a source of historical, religious, and scientific inspiration. Because the sun is so important to all of us...humans and critters alike...it has been studied more than any other object in the universe, next to planet Earth. From here on earth, the sun looks like a yellow-white globe of light in the sky. It is 150 million kilometers away from us, give or take a few million, and lies in the part of the Milky Way galaxy known as Orion Arm. The best time to observe the sun is during a total solar eclipse and it does require using a special solar filter on your telescope.
"Gravity is the force that keeps planets orbiting inside the solar system. The sun's surface gravity is 274.0 m/s2 (squared). By comparison, Earth's gravitational pull is 9.8 m/s2. People riding on a rocket near the surface of the Sun and trying to escape its gravitational pull would have to accelerate at a speed of 2,223,720 km/h to get away." YIKES! That's some gravitational pull!  Solar wind, the constant stream of particles that the sun emits, bathes all of the planets in radiation. (Not a bath I'd want to take!) But this "wind" is an invisible connection between the Sun and all other planets and is the driving force behind seasonal changes. I did not know this!  This "wind," here on Earth, affects currents in the oceans, our day-to-day weather, and our long-term climate.
As might have guessed, the Sun is massive in volume. Alone, it contains most of the mass of the solar system....a whopping 99.8% of all the mass of the planets, rings, moons, asteroids, and comets combined! So just how large is the Sun? At its equator, it measures an astounding 4,379,000 km. More than 1,300,000 Earths would fit inside it. Kinda makes you feel small, doesn't it?
The Sun is a ball of super-heated gas. Its materials are divided into layers, kind of like an onion. The core of the Sun is heated to more than 15 million degrees. The Sun's own gravity helps to balance out the pressure from its core heat, which helps it to keep its spherical shape.  Otherwise, it might look like some sort of blob.  Scientists consider the Sun to be a dwarf, compared to other stars in the galaxy. Its age is approximately 4.6 billion years old, which puts it in the middle-age category. Some stars are nearly as old as the universe itself, 13.7 billion years old, the Sun is considered to be a second-generation star. Some of its materials came from other stars that are now long gone. The Sun formed in a cloud of gas and dust about 4.6 billion years ago. "It began shining as soon as its core started fusing hydrogen to create helium. It will continue this fusion process for another five billion years or so. Then, when it runs out of hydrogen, it will start fusing helium. At that point, the Sun will go through a radical change. ​Its outer atmosphere will expand, which will likely result in the complete destruction of planet Earth." But with five billion years left for planet Earth, I have to ask myself what can we all do to make sure that she remains as healthy and vibrant well into old age? I believe we all know the answer to that. It's a simple word called R-E-S-P-E-C-T.  Earth Day is coming up next month. This might be a good time to start thinking about how we can really show love and respect for our planet on her personal Mother's Day...and every day of the year.

​Greene, Nick. "Journey Through the Solar System: Our Sun." ThoughtCo, Feb. 20, 2018, thoughtco.com/things-you-should-know-about-the-sun-3073449.

Ahhhh, the weekend is upon us. Once again it's Friday and time for me to make a few plans for my free time. My mom, as most mother's do, wants us to spend more time together as a family and she thought it would be educational for all of us to attend a Shakespearean play. Lily Pad has a thriving theatre group, Frogs in the Park After Dark, and several times a year they present evening plays that are free for all to attend. While this may not be my first choice of a Friday evening activity, I do think that Quigley "the younger" could use a bit of culture in his life. Dad's not going to like it either, I suspect, but he always goes along whenever family-time is involved. He's a good sport about everything.
As a writer, I can appreciate great works even when I don't necessarily understand them. And such is the case with the plays of William Shakespeare. We study him in school, but I don't recall much of what I learned. So I looked up The Bard and found some interesting facts.The most interesting, and probably least known and most controversial, is what his first play was. Scholars can't seem to agree on a play.  Some believe it was Henry VI, Part II. This history play was first performed in 1590-1591 and was published, according to "Stationer's Register" in March of 1594. Yet other scholars believe his first play was Titus Andronicus, first published in January 1594. A few more believe it was Comedy of Errors, published in June of 1594. Shakespeare co-wrote the tragedy Arden of Faversham which was published in June of 1592. Some believe that this was Shakespeare's first play although it is officially listed as written by "Anonymous."  All of the above-mentioned plays were written between 1588 - 1590.
There's lots of information that scholars don't know, however. There is no definitive record of a chronology of his plays, nor even exactly how many plays he wrote. There are a number of reasons for this:

• Shakespeare didn't own the copyright of his plays. They were owned by the theatre company.
• Shakespeare often collaborated with other playwrights, who contributed substantial pieces to one another's works.
• None of the plays were published until the 1590's after they had appeared in the theatre several times.

There are several writers of that period who are either known or suspected of, collaborating with Shakespeare. They include Thomas Nashe, George Peele, Thomas Middleton, John Fletcher, George Wilkins, John Davies, Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe, and probably a few more unidentified authors. Shakespeare, like other playwrights, wrote for his audience. Because the plays were owned by the theatre company, directors and even actors could, and freely did, change the text.
Recently, several attempts have been made to piece together a coherent list of his plays have been published. But they disagree. Historical records from Shakespeare's time aren't complete enough for anyone to know for sure what his first play really was.
Modern research can better tell us which were plays were his earliest works but it is doubtful that we'll ever truly know which one came first. And, to me, I don't think it really matters much. Shakespeare's works are classic and hold the same allure for audiences as they did when they were first performed.
My family and I will see A Midsummer's Night Dream...my favorite of all of Shakespeare's known works. I hope little Quigley will get as much out of it as I did when I first saw it at his age. 
Have a great weekend, whatever your plans. Until Monday, I wish you love and
                                                                  Peace.​

​Jamieson, Lee. "What Was the First Play Shakespeare Wrote?" ThoughtCo, Dec. 12, 2017, thoughtco.com/first-play-shakespeare-wrote-2985072.

Happy spring, everyone! Isn't it grand? Spring, more than any other season, makes me feel happy. Everyone wants to be happy, right? It's one thing that is universal. Whether you're human, amphibian, or whatever...happiness is something we all desire. But have you ever stopped to think what happiness looks like around the world? Does happiness look and feel the same to everyone?
Here's a little research on the subject that I found fascinating. I hope you do, too.
1. Feeling fortunate. France, Germany, Russia, Poland, and Japan (among others) believe that fortune is an element of happiness. The US, Spain, Ecuador, and Argentina (among others) do not believe that fortune is an element of happiness.
2. In a 2017 Gallup Poll, 70% of those surveyed said they had laughed, smiles, or experienced joy the day before the survey. 30% of the people worldwide said that they had learned or did something interesting the day before the survey.
3.  People in Western cultures put a higher priority on maximizing happiness and minimizing sadness. Those in non-Western cultures tend to place more value on harmony and conformity than on individual happiness.
4.  In Western, or individualist cultures, intense (high arousal)are valued and promoted more than quieter (low arousal) emotions. In Eastern or collectivist, cultures the reverse is true. Thus, Westerners experience more intense emotions and quieter ones. Easterners prefer, and experience, quieter emotions.
5.  Cultural flow.  Studies have shown that Chinese people tend to feel mixed emotions (both positive and negative) toward certain events while Americans tend to feel one way or the other. Recent research has shown that how we want to feel shapes how we do feel...so we tend to go with our cultural norms.
6.  Empathy standings. A 2017 study coming out of the University of Michigan found that
Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Peru, Denmark, and the United Arab Emirates ranked the highest when it comes to empathy.  The US came in at number 7.
7. So who, then, were the lowest empathy-ranking countries? Lithuania, Venezuela, Estonia, Poland, and Bulgaria.  Seven out of the bottom 10 countries were from Eastern Europe. 
8. Does healthy equal happy?  That's not always true. Culture affects health ramifications, as well. In one study, a positive outlook resulted in a healthier cardiovascular lipid profile for Americans but not for the Japanese. 
​9.  Where does optimism fit into it?  Optimistic American women live longer, according to one study. Optimism seemed to help lower the risk of death from heart disease, stroke, and cancer. But a similar study done in Britain showed that well-being did not appear to affect the mortality of most Brits.
10. We're more alike than we know. Of anger, contempt, disgust, fear, happiness and, sadness, happiness was most accurately recognized expression by people in 37 different countries who participated in the study. In that same study of 37 countries across 5 continents, people displayed similar behavior, ie laughing and smiling, when they were happy.
11. Positively outgoing.  When people acted more extroverted, they reported feeling more positive emotions in their daily activities. This was true across different cultures: US, Venezuela, Japan, the Philippines, and China. 
12. A study has shown that there is a link between free will and happiness, not only in US teens but also in those living in China.
And there you have it. I hope you've enjoyed learning how happiness looks across our planet. Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to read my blog...and that makes me one happy little frog!
                                                                           Peace.

Today is Wednesday and, of course, that means my friend and wise teacher the Dharma Frog comes to visit. I decided to get creative with my breakfast this morning so yesterday I put together a type of breakfast casserole. This morning, all I needed to do was to pop it in the oven. While it was baking, I set the table and got the tea brewing. it worked out perfectly and everything was ready just as Dharma hopped onto my lily pad. After we chatted for a few moments, we sat down to eat.
"Tadpole," Dharma said, "You have many qualities that I admire, but I think one of your best traits is that you don't brag about your accomplishments. I consider you an excellent writer, a wonderful friend, a supportive mentor to your little brother, and a devoted son to your parents. yet you remain very humble." I must admit that I was quite surprised by Dharma's display of affection so all I could manage to say was, "Thank you, Sir. It's kind of you to say." And, as it turned out, the value of humbleness was my lesson for the week.
"Son, the frog who knows does not speak. The frog who speaks does not know. Do you know what is meant by this?" I thought about it for a few moments and told Dharma that I thought I had a grasp on it but would he please go ahead and enlighten me. Dharma explained that very few experts in their field feel the need to spout off about their accomplishments...or to brag about how wonderful they are. When frogs, and humans too, begin to spout off, unsolicited, about their excellence and all they have accomplished, it is a sure sign that they suffer from low self-esteem. Often they talk about doing things that they have only dreamed of. Then Dharma asked me a strange question. "Irwin, is bragging always a bad thing?" "Yes, I think it is," I replied, not feeling very confident in my answer. "Isn't is best to say nothing...or let others do your bragging for you?" "I can see where you might think that, Little One, but there are times when bragging is acceptable. Human and frog self-esteem and self-confidence are wrapped up in our ability to take pride in our accomplishments. It's not only okay but healthy, to do a little bragging. It's like giving yourself a little 'mental pat on the back.' You don't always have to hide your light under a barrel." So, Dharma, how can we brag about our accomplishments without looking boastful?"
Dharma then gave me the dos and don'ts about bragging.
1.  The least desirable way to brag is to directly draw attention to your personal qualities. Without confirming evidence, others aren't likely to believe what you say. These qualities include being smart, well-liked, or being talented. Generally-speaking, it violates the social norms to portray yourself in such a positive light. As an example, it's not considered okay to portray yourself as "great" but it is okay to portray yourself as "stupid." You do have to be careful with this, however, because it can come off as if you're fishing for a compliment. this is especially true if you because overly self-deprecating. 
2.  Drawing attention to something you've done. You might think it's immodest to say that you're fantastic, but it's alright to say you accomplished some "very great things." If, say, you won a gold medal at the Olympics, it's fine to feel happy and proud about this accomplishment, but it wouldn't be fine to wear that gold medal when you go out to do your food shopping, or when you take the kids to school. Sometimes it can be cute when a two-year-old brags about all the stuff he/she can do, but it certainly isn't cute when you're 42.
#3. Indirectly drawing attention to your own great personal qualities.  Perhaps you think it's fine to talk about your great personal qualities by saying what someone else has said about you. Again, this can be a slippery slope. Unless you provide a direct quote, your listener can't be sure that what you say is accurate.  We, your audience, might be more inclined to believe you if you provided a document...say your annual eval report. But those documents are best left to the eyes of your loved ones and very closest friends. 
#4. Indirectly bringing attention to something you've done. Is it okay to post a link about your accomplishment on your Facebook page? That may seem perfectly fine but your FB friends will most certainly view your behavior as false modesty. If someone should ask for a link regarding your specific accomplishment, then it's fine to send it to them. But only IF they ask first.
#5.  Drawing attention to your success with a disclaimer. This includes saying things like, "I shouldn't brag, but..." By adding the disclaimer, "I shouldn't brag, but..." only proves to your listener that you know you are violating social norms. If you simply stated that you did something and were happy about it, your audience would accept that as an honest statement and be just fine with it. 
#6.  Basking in someone else's reflected glory. Grandparents are notorious for doing this. Bragging on what their grandbabies have done is what they live for. But showing a cute baby photo to friends and neighbors is one thing. It's something else entirely when grandparents (or anyone else) try to make themselves look good by aligning themselves with the person who actually had the accomplishment. "He's a chip off the ol' block!" or "She get's her intelligence from me, you know." Those are HUGE no-no's.
#7  Reporting on a conversation in which you were praised where the evidence can be verified. This is the only "moderately" acceptable form of self-praise. This happens when you shift the conversational "footing" from you the speaker to the person you're quoting. And you must be able to provide enough details to make the comment seem plausible.
As Dharma wrapped up my lesson on bragging, I asked him if it was ever okay to say something good about what you've done. His answer was simple. "If you must say something good about your self or your accomplishment, always choose #7...providing a quote from someone else who said the nice thing. It's also considered fine to report on your success as long as you're not hurting anyone's feelings...such as bragging about winning in front of the loser. It is always acceptable, too, to make a simple statement that you accomplished something and that you are happy about it. No more and no less. Dharma reminded me that by not bragging, you’ll also guarantee that your friends and family will be even more likely to root for your continued successes the next time. "The frog who knows does not speak."
Until tomorrow, Dharma and I wish you love and peace,

When I was a tadpole, and a young froglet, Irwin Quagmire Wart was a big mouthful for my friends and even some of my teachers to say. So, to make it easier, they bestowed upon me the nickname IQ. Today's blog is about IQ's but it isn't about me. It's actually about Intelligent Quotient (IQ) scores.
You may believe that the children of today aren't as smart as when you were a kid. But, guess what? You'd be wrong! And it's quite possible that the opposite might be true. Researchers studying the Flynn effect have found that scores on IQ tests have been on the rise.
So what is this Flynn effect? No, it has nothing to do with Michael Flynn and/or the Russian-US election scandal. The Flynn effect was first described in the 1980's by researcher, James Flynn. He referred to the findings that IQ scores have risen over the past century. Other researchers have found evidence to back up Flynn's claim. generally, IQ scores have increased since the 1950's, although there are some exceptions. Now, the existence of the Flynn effect is rarely disputed. 
So why have the Flynn effect happened? Researchers have several theories. One explanation has to do with improved health and nutrition. An example would be the knowledge that alcohol and cigarette smoking has a harmful impact on unborn babies. There has also been the discontinuation of lead-based paints, improvements in the prevention of infectious diseases and, of course, improvements in human diets. Scott Barry Kaufman writes, “The Flynn effect serves as a reminder that when we give people more opportunities to prosper, more people actually do prosper.”
Another plausible explanation has to do with societal changes that have occurred since the Industrial Revolution. James Flynn tells us that the world today is "a world where we've had to develop new mental habits, new habits of mind.”   Flynn found that IQ has risen the most rapidly on questions that ask humans to find similarities between different things, as well as in more abstract problem-solving.  These are skills that are more necessary now in the modern world than they were a century ago.
There have been several suggestions made to explain why modern society might lead to higher IQ scores. More humans had intellectually demanding jobs now than they did 100 years ago. Schools have changed, as well. A test given in the 1900's might rely more on the student's ability to memorize facts. But today, kids have to explain the reasons for something...not just memorize the basic facts. More students finish school and go on to college now, as well. Another factor might be family size. Having fewer children allows the parents more time to interact with their children, teaching them more vocabulary words. Even the entertainment of today is considered more complex. it didn't take a great deal of intellect to understand "Leave it To Beaver." 
The Flynn effect has shown us that the human brain is much more adaptable and more malleable than was previously thought. Human thinking patterns aren't innate but, rather, something that can be learned from the human's environment. Humans think about the world today differently than did their ancestors. And thank goodness for that! It could be that the Flynn effect might even suggest that human IQ might not be what we all thought it was. Instead of being a measure of natural and unlearned intelligence, it might actually be something that can be shaped by education and the world that humans live in.
Education is even MORE important now than ever before.

​Hopper, Elizabeth. "An Introduction to the Flynn Effect." ThoughtCo, Mar. 16, 2018, thoughtco.com/an-introduction-to-the-flynn-effect-4159830.

I helped my little brother build a kite last week and over the weekend, the Wart family set out for a day of kite-flying fun. The spring weather was perfect; mild temperatures with plenty of bright sunshine. The homemade kite did pretty well. I have to admit that I was skeptical, at first. But it took off and soared high. That is until it got caught in the branches of a large tree. The kite didn't fair too well, I'm sad to say, but as I looked up into the tree's canopy of new leaves, I started wondering about trees. Which brings me to today's blog topic: Trees and how much of them are actually alive.
Would it surprise you to learn that only about one percent of a dormant mature tree is biologically living? It did me! What I discovered was that the other 99 percent of the tree is actually composed of non-living, structural wood cells. That means that very little of the tree's woody volume is composed of 'living, metabolizing tissue.' The roots, leaves, buds, and a thin film (or skin) of cells called cambium found just under the bark, is really all that's 'alive" in any tree. 
There are, however, other living cells which are are important to tree growth and are found in other parts of the tree; root tips (apical meristem) and leaf or flower buds. But these make up a very small percentage of the tree's volume of cells. Non-living or dead cells comprise the largest volume of the tree. These dead cells provide structural support for the living cells. 
Trees start out their early life as a germinating seed with every living cell going into hyperdrive! As the seed becomes a seedling, then a sapling, then a mature tree, its living contents shrink as the main percentage of the total volume of the tree. "Trees increasingly lose their living cytoplasmic cells as metabolism ceases in each cell, and although they are no longer alive, these non-living cells now provide protection, transportation, and physical support for the living ones."
But the dead cells in the tree still provide a vital role. Without the support and structure provided by the non-living cells, trees would likely die and certainly wouldn't grow as large as they do. Those dead cells are vitally important for the tree in the whole process of how it grows. This includes the "heavy lifting" of holding up all the trees branches and the bark which protects the thin layer of living cells underneath. The bark of a tree is an ongoing process of creating sieve tubes to transport water and nutrients from the leaves to the roots and back.
New cells are formed and living cells cease metabolization as they transform into "transport vessels and protective skin," thus creating a cycle of creation, rapid growth, slowing metabolism, and death as the tree reaches upward and grows into a healthy, full plant.
Wood is only considered dead when it is separated from the tree itself because it still serves a vital role in the plant's life as long as it is attached to living cells within the tree. So even though wood is largely made up of non-living cells, it isn't considered dead until the branch falls off or it cut down by a human. 
Trees are wonderful. As the largest plants on earth, they provide us with shade and cooling winds. They provide oxygen, store carbon, stabilize the soil, and provide a home to many forms of wildlife. They also provide humans with tools and shelter. While I may not be a tree frog, I can still appreciate the beauty and majesty of trees. Not only are trees essential for life, but as the longest living species on earth, they give us a link between the past, present, and future. Even if they do, on occasion, eat a kite.
Until tomorrow, I wish you 
                                                                       Peace.

​Nix, Steve. "How Much of a Tree Is Alive?" ThoughtCo, Mar. 13, 2018, thoughtco.com/how-much-of-tree-is-alive-3967213.