Monday Message #6:

The early hours of Sunday were quiet and beautiful to behold at my homestead in Kennebunk.
Shoveling the light, fluffy snow was a pleasure. The beauty of nature suspends me in time and
reality while my mind forms an idea of gratitude and my heart settles down to savor this morning’s
setting. I realize I am safe, sound, and loved.

My wife and I have each other, love being together, and excited about the next chapter in our lives as
we prepare to move to a farmhouse in nearby Lyman, where my daughter’s family lives. Our lives
remain active intellectually, physically, and spiritually. The foundation of this trust is a Divine who
knows and cares for our well-being.

Faith is not easy to maintain when your life and ours suddenly face threat in our governance and
democracy. Which comes first, political or spiritual assurance and trust.

As an entrepreneur I live with uncertainty all the time. Faith in a power greater than myself and hope
for a good outcome to the risks under my feet win over each day against threat of failure or loss. An
entrepreneur seldom has a financial base sufficient to cover disruptions or loss. He or she has just
enough working capital for the short term, maybe longer, but not as long as the financial security
assembled by a different person usually working with a well-funded, long term business, non-profit,
or government entity. So, the entrepreneur builds a relationship with an entity with greater power
who has our backs when all is said and done. That entity we believe is Divine and greater than the
forces of human greed, deceit, or wealth. The Divine I refer to may be God, a community of people
working together to make life more manageable for less fortunate, or a group of sufferers with a
common disease who live by this faith. In all cases, this is a partnership with God. In the history of
religions, some believe faith is enough to live with or, as I believe, a faith that works because the
human has a part to play in contributing to a good life and who is open to the guidance from a
Divine Source. In this latter partnership, humans act their part in serving the common good while
the Divinity deals with outcomes. The happy part of the journey is living a trusting partnership each
day in faith and hope and doing good in the world. I have never believed that God owes me success
materially. I have only believed that my faith protects me from self-centeredness and greed
because I learn each day that working with others for the common good is enriching and worthy of
my life’s energy.

Tom’s of Maine began in 1970 as an idea to do good for people and nature starting with a mere
$5000 from a friend. It grew to $45 million in sales while holding the belief that doing right by others
and nature was integral to achieving success. The idea worked for our customers, our people, the
community, the industry, our investors, and my family. The needs of the common good makes the
journey worthy. Affluence is a by-product, not an end in itself.
I know no other way than to be part of the good deeds and worthy causes in partnership with my
fellows and with my Divine Source. My faith is strong enough for today; tomorrow is another day.
Without my deliberate connecting with goodness, my analytical mind wants to sort out the
implications of the current events and send me down a rabbit hole of fear. Goodness takes both

faith and work in a partnership. That good work eventually outlives the forces of self-interest and
fear.

In the seeming uncertainty of this world, I choose to be faithful to the Good today because I will
help strengthen the good and trust in the Divine Power. A trusting partnership.