As a teenager, Dad and I would take walks along the parkways near home. When I was having trouble in school or feeling miserably depressed, he simply showed me the new wildflowers blooming by the grass.

“Look over there, see them growing,” he would say.

Remember the happiness of childhood? I can remember many, many years ago getting ready for my usual Saturday morning middle school basketball game. I didn’t feel much like going there at all. On my walk to the gym, I noticed that the local park ice skating rink was open. I put on some skates and drifted all over the ice. I gave myself permission to be free on the ice and skipped the ball game.