Two nights ago, I trudged up to bed about half-past midnight. Normally, I fluff my pillow beneath my head, lie back, and proceed to fall asleep. Instantly. On this night, however, I couldn’t turn my mind off of from a few unnerving thoughts. One teenager is half-way across the country, “just doing his thing,” with a female friend whom he … Read More
Dear Maria
I empathize with the trials you and your family face. Yesterday, today, tomorrow, thousands of people have already or will enter a similar circumstance. Some will come as a surprise and live closer than you might imagine, while others will connect from afar. No matter the distance, we are neighbors in grief, and allies in healing. The details vary, yet … Read More
Celebrating a Gift
The birthday card my mother sent me a few months ago was simple, a few watercolor flowers sitting atop a box; the creators had glued a tiny blue ribbon above the scrolling message. The words inside held a lifetime of sentiment that I will remember for years to come: You are a smile and a gift and an amazing story of growth and change and … Read More
Food for…
I have been carrying around Geneen Roth’s, Women Food And God, for months now, hopeful each day will provide a few stolen moments… Actually, my life lends itself, daily, to a number of mini barren blocks of time. How I deplete those minutes varies, but most recently I have exhausted them through word wars with my sister. Word wars in the literal sense, in the … Read More
The Making of a Happy Liver
Today, my job has brought me to a maximum security men’s prison in upstate New York. I was one of six adults enlisted to transport seven at-risk students to the prison for an awareness program. Five inmates, including three murderers, participate in an intensive training program before going on to teach delinquent students, to try to reach them, to encourage … Read More
The Fat Lady Has Sung: Part I
We have a five-foot-by-three-foot mirror over the double sink in our bathroom. My husband was correct when he said the mirror would make the bathroom look bigger. Needless to say, I wasn’t too keen on the idea, when he suggested the addition as part of the remodeling project, because I was at the heaviest weight I’d ever been. I can … Read More
The Healing Power of Solidarity
“What are you reading?” The question elicited a smile from me. “A smut magazine,” I replied to my friend. “I usually don’t buy this stuff.” “I know that.” That’s why I’m surprised,” my vacation buddy said. “I know, but it had Sandra Bullock and Elizabeth Edwards on the cover. I had to purchase it.” I had been compelled, as I … Read More
Do-Overs
I had nearly completed a post earlier today, when I accidentally deleted the text, while typing a new word. As I watched the letter “r” appear in the blank box, I saw the “saving…” notice at the bottom. My index finger dove for the escape key. Success was not to be mine. I have enjoyed the automatic save feature because I become so … Read More
Hear My Fear
Two months ago, I gave a speech on the physical facet of loss and healing. “Yelling,” I said, “is an outlet to vent frustration, anger, and hurt. That rage reaction to those emotions, however, often signals an inner fear of something.” After I finished speaking, a man in the small audience said, “I’ve learned something new today. I didn’t know … Read More
(Your) “Time Heals All Wounds”
My heart goes out to the celebrities of recent who are facing strife of great proportions in their lives. Adultery. Infidelity. Cheating. Hurt. Pain. Anger. Confusion. Betrayal. Sadness. And the list of words to describe the emotions they will experience at some time throughout their ordeal goes on and on and on… Firstly they are entering a phase of their … Read More