I mean no disrespect to those who also find these debates complicated, charged and even bewildering, but I wish that I could understand why so many people are threatened by the #BlackLivesMatter movement. And I’m not talking about the extremists, although they are out there, they are out everywhere, in every group; religion, politics,… Continue reading She Implored Me to Speak Up
Tag: Love
The Fifteenth of May
Dear Mom, Today is your birthday. It’s always been such a special and important day for me, because you have always been so special and important to me. I’ve been thinking about this day all week. It’s not easy to know you’re not here to celebrate it, and to accept that I can’t call you or Skype with you. I can’t hear your voice outside my head...
A Letter from My Inner Wise Self
You, dear soul, are doing fine. You have been finding your way through the struggle, and the muck and mire. You’ve had a lot to contend with over this past year. But you’ve done it every single day. Every night you’ve gone to bed, and every morning you’ve gotten up and faced the day. That’s… Continue reading A Letter from My Inner Wise Self
The Lunch
Almost exactly three weeks after we lost my mother, my father and I were grabbing lunch one day, just the two of us. We'd decided to eat at a lovely little cafe not too far from where we'd been staying every night for these past few weeks; my grandmother's house, overlooking the beach and the… Continue reading The Lunch
A Hundred, Million Worlds
When my son was a child, we said some variation of this to each other every day and every night, "I love you a hundred, million worlds." I'm not exactly sure of the origins of our saying it, but I know that my heart had never before felt the way that it did about him,… Continue reading A Hundred, Million Worlds
Dispelling the Myth
A relationship is an absolute ton of work, the magnitude of which vacillates within our daily lives. If I or anyone else has led you to believe that love, romance or marriage are easy, well then I would like to go on record as saying that this is complete rubbish; twaddle, poppycock, bollocks and so forth.… Continue reading Dispelling the Myth
Snippets & Moments
Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same. – Emily Brontë It’s in the little moments. It truly is. And in the scheme of things...these are but a few snippets. “Life is not made up of minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years, but of moments. You must experience each one… Continue reading Snippets & Moments
Across the Great Divide
“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up… Continue reading Across the Great Divide
Maybe We Can Make This Last a Lifetime
Valentine’s Blog Disclaimer: Although I personally am pro-Valentine’s Day & this post is pro-romance, I don’t subscribe to the pressures put onto us about Feb 14th, and sadly I can understand why some people have come to resent, avoid & scorn it… The rose is red, the violet's blue, The honey's sweet, and so are… Continue reading Maybe We Can Make This Last a Lifetime
You & Me We Are Destined You’ll Agree
To spend the rest of our lives With each other The rest of our days Like two lovers Forever yeah, forever… But how does this happen? How does a relationship evolve into a marriage that withstands the tests of time and seems, to anyone observing it, to have been destiny? I’m certain of only one… Continue reading You & Me We Are Destined You’ll Agree
Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered am I
When certain words stay with us it's natural and easy to wonder or question why? What about them rang so true, hit so close to home, touched us so deeply? Hi there! I'm currently at work on a piece, a follow-up to last week's piece on happiness....on unhappiness. And also a one or two… Continue reading Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered am I
Make Just One Someone Happy
…And you will be happy, too http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fznw-AGoENo Preface Sometimes I chalk energy and having lots of it, up to things like; adrenalin, a good night’s sleep, cardio, eating lots of nutrient-rich foods, spending time outdoors in the sunshine…because they are all proven. But happiness can bring energy up, and conversely unhappiness can bring energy… Continue reading Make Just One Someone Happy
May Good Luck Go With You, And Happiness Too
Someone asked me how it feels having become the mother of a twenty-three year old today. How does it feel? Let’s see…it feels weird. I remember being twenty-three myself and it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago. So it also reminds me about my own aging, of course. That does, and my knees… Continue reading May Good Luck Go With You, And Happiness Too
It Seems Night Endlessly Begins & Ends
As parents, one of our main goals is, [among the many, many goals], to keep our children safe. To raise and take care of them from before they’re born, until they are full-grown and thriving. Fresh in my mind are the journeys of three different sets of parents [all are people I do not… Continue reading It Seems Night Endlessly Begins & Ends
I Can Smile at the Old Days
Sunday was ‘National Grandparents Day’. The general public may or may not be aware of this. I can’t honestly say that I remember it every year, or even most years, and I’m fairly certain I only ever knew about it at all because of a few teachers who had their class celebrate it when… Continue reading I Can Smile at the Old Days
Love Takes Time…
No matter how busy you are, you must take time to make the other person feel important. — Mary Kay Ash Life is generally a pretty busy balancing act of daily living. Sometimes things that are important to us, I mean really meaningful and precious aspects of our lives, can get pushed out of the… Continue reading Love Takes Time…
There’s Got to be Some Folks Around With Memories Just Like Mine
…Who'd give the world to stop the clock, and turn back the hands of time. — Merle Haggard Everyone has family, right? It’s a thread that ties you to another person or group of people that you don’t even necessarily know, have possibly never even met…but...they’re family! It means somewhere along the way someone you’re… Continue reading There’s Got to be Some Folks Around With Memories Just Like Mine
I Will Remember You, Will You Remember Me?
Don't let your life pass you by…Weep not for the memories… I have been remiss; I missed posting a blog last Tuesday, and believe me I felt kind of awful about it. I didn’t forget, not at all, but as I mentioned I’ve been traveling and spending as much time with family as possible. And,… Continue reading I Will Remember You, Will You Remember Me?
What the World Needs Now…
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. ― Philo of Alexandria It’s not too difficult to hurt me; I’m a pretty easy target. I don’t have a proverbial thick skin. I let things get to me, as if they got right inside and into my heart. I wear my feelings on… Continue reading What the World Needs Now…
Good Intentions …or… In Defense of Mothers with Grown Children Who Make “Those Comments”
Let me start off by saying definitively…this is neither an attack, nor a defensive. It is merely an attempt to describe something that I truly believe is done with good intentions. Recently I've read a couple of perspective pieces by you young, harried, stressed-out and overtired mommies, that specifically spoke about having older mothers, whose… Continue reading Good Intentions …or… In Defense of Mothers with Grown Children Who Make “Those Comments”
Raina
Thank you Jen & Terry, I'm honored to be part of your 'Eleanors' in 'The Eleanor Project'... I love your Project!!
~My Photo Share~ #11
"Dad of 3 Daughters?" I think I've taken 6,487 photos of them & this "house" by now. They must be close to fledging. I took this one this morning. The Mom's been doing most of the feedings today, then this one happened!! To me it looks like the Dad is looking staunchly right at me… Continue reading ~My Photo Share~ #11
Lighten Your Load
My third & last post in May for "Stroke Awareness Month" A therapist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they’d be asked the “half empty or half full” question. Instead, with a smile on her face she inquired: ”How heavy is this… Continue reading Lighten Your Load
And the Course of a Lifetime Runs, Over and Over Again
A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path. ― Agatha Christie On Mother’s Day two weekends ago we discovered that robins had built a nest containing three beautiful wee eggs… Continue reading And the Course of a Lifetime Runs, Over and Over Again
Just the Way You Are
And so it begins, I'm kicking off this blog with a personal essay that hopefully ties together two major parts of my life right now, dealing with the aftermath of a stroke and learning to accept myself despite the obstacles; past & present. Also, May is "Stroke Awareness Month", so I hope to bring attention… Continue reading Just the Way You Are
A Stroke of Good Fortune 