Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose

by Joe Biden

Rules for Happiness: something to do, someone to love, something to hope for. —Immanuel Kant

if the problem is fear, the answer is knowledge. Each side has to be willing to try to understand the concerns of the other.

Funerals are for the living, I have always believed, and the job of the eulogist is to acknowledge the enormity of the loss they have just suffered and to help them appreciate that the legacy and accomplishments of their loved one have not died with them.

So I try to be mindful, at all times, of what a difference a small human gesture can make to people in need. What does it really cost to take a moment to look someone in the eye, to give him a hug, to let her know, I get it. You’re not alone?

“This can happen again. This is happening in other parts of the world now. And you have to speak out. You can’t remain silent. Silence is complicity.”