WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] May 11, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 19 A MOTHER’S INFLUENCE Mark Twain once said, “My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.” A mother’s influence often extends beyond her child. Day in and day out, the influence of mothers may be obvious, subtle, or both.…

WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] May 4, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 18 EVERYDAY INFLUENCERS[2] May’s theme for Winston Weekly is “Everyday Influencers.” Teacher Appreciation Week starts tomorrow with the theme, “Empowering Educators: Sustaining Resilience, Building Sustainability.” National Nurses Week is also this week, spotlighting The Power of Nurses.™ Tuesday, May 6 is National Appreciation Day and National Nurses…

WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] April 27, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 17 READING ALOUD[2] Twenty-five years ago, Rudine Sims Bishop wrote: “Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience. Reading then, becomes a means of self-affirmation.” As…

WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] April 20, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 16 CULTIVATING THROUGH CULTURE[2] Learning other cultural traditions can cultivate empathy. From Christians celebrating the resurrection of Jesus at Easter to Jewish communities commemorating the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in ancient Egypt to Muslims celebrating Ramadan, early spring traditions involve central themes of hope and renewal. The…

WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] April 13, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 15 RESERVING JUDGMENT[2] As with raising children, educational curriculum, marriage, and many other things, there is no bright line for what to do or how to do it. So too with cultivating empathy, although reserving judgment is essential. Reserving judgment requires patience, a virtue often lost in…

WINSTON WEEKLY©[1] April 6, 2025 Vol. 3, No. 14 CULTIVATING EMPATHY[2] April’s theme is empathy, or what Ashley Abramson calls an “umbrella trait.” Ms. Abramson discusses research suggesting that the virtues of kindness, cooperation, and tolerance are cultivated through empathy. She cites several researchers, including this from Dr. Ann Rumble: “Empathetic people ask themselves, ‘Maybe…