Writer, Speaker, Editor, Blogger
Clean up is still in progress in my neighborhood and surrounding areas following “Helene.” The initial fallen trees and branches are now an unsightly brown, stacked high, lining yards and the sides of streets. An interesting section of trunk caught my eye recently. On its side, a circular hole is visible in the core of […]
Maintaining a positive perspective in hard life seasons is challenging. It’s easy to drift into a woe-is-me mindset and forget the way you feel now won’t last forever. One of my most difficult challenges in this season of grief is dreaming about Jim and then waking to find him not here. Sometimes, I don’t even […]
Thus far, this has been a year of overlapping seasons. Winter never fully took hold before warm temperatures encouraged a premature spring. The colors of fall hung on amid the budding trees and greening grass. Then, winter returned, with temperatures below freezing. At times, we experience overlapping life seasons. We hardly complete the handling of […]
This week marks another step forward in closing an important chapter in my life. The remaining furniture and other items in my aunt’s house were removed for donation. I haven’t been back to the house to see it empty because I know it will be hard emotionally. I also know it is a necessary step. […]
This year, in our area of the country, fall has been slow in coming. The trees remained green long after other areas. Then, seemingly overnight, the leaves turned, providing a riot of reds, golds, and oranges among the green. Sometimes, life seasons are slow to come or slow to leave. When you’re longing for a […]
For most of us, March marks the return of spring, and with it, new vegetation, multiple shades of green, milder temperatures, and bright blue skies. Yet, March is a month known for its changeability. Sometimes, within just a few hours, spring-like weather morphs into strong, biting winds, severe storms, or a sudden return to frigid […]
Many people love fall because it heralds cooler weather and the upcoming holidays. Yet others view autumn with dread because it rolls into the cold, bleak, darkness of winter. Life is a succession of changes. Life seasons come and go, just as they do in nature. How we view seasons of personal change has an […]
Each year, with the approach of Mother’s Day, I’m reminded of the waiting journey my mother and I had in common, infertility. My parents were married for ten years before I was born. My husband and I were married almost six years before our daughter was born. One of the hardest parts of waiting for […]
The holidays bring joyous festivities, hustle and bustle, and time with family, but for many, grief is also present. Some grieve the loss of loved ones. Others experience the nostalgia of childhood holiday memories or gatherings that no longer happen. Still others grieve ongoing relationship challenges or difficult memories of unpleasant holidays past. This year, […]
In the last few weeks, I’ve talked to several friends who are caring for aging parents. One described a day when she needed to be with each parent in a different location, with one being an emergent situation. The other friend mentioned how caring for her parent changed the landscape of her weekends. I reminded […]