An Empty Seat at the Table

This year, our family Thanksgiving will be different. This year, we’ll have an empty chair at our table. This year, a beloved family member, my aunt Marilyn, our “Chinkie,” who graduated to heaven in July, will be absent from our Thanksgiving table. All my life, she was present at every Thanksgiving. During my childhood, and […]

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What 2020 Taught Us

Weathering a difficult season of life often feels like treading water in rough seas. You do pretty well for a while and then suddenly a huge wave swamps you. Undertow pulls you down, and as you struggle to reach the surface, you wonder how much more you can take. For many, 2020 felt like unrelenting […]

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Closing a Life Chapter

2020 This week marks the end of a long chapter of my life as I finalize the sale of my childhood home. My father built the house in 1951 and it has remained in the family for almost 70 years. As I write this, I struggle to sort my emotions and thoughts. Closing a life […]

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5 Ways to Avoid Becoming Hard-Hearted

Have you ever known a person you’d describe as hard-hearted? You know, someone who is closed, non-communicative, devoid of compassion, unfeeling, stern. Behind the stiff exterior are probably many factors related to how and why the person reached this point, but you’d likely never be able to crack through the layers of protective shell to […]

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