Yearly Archives:: 2014

Heralding October

October 1st, 2014
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Even though my heart is really not into it, I know today that I must turn the page on my calendar and greet October with open arms.  I know I have to do this because October wants to stay and get comfy and has no plans to go anywhere at all.

Don’t get me wrong, October is a good month full of Halloween decorations and candy, warm weather that’s still sometimes good enough for shorts and flip flops but then it usually turns into chilly weather towards the end of the month inviting us to wrap ourselves in soft blankets … Read More

I Am A Hopeful Sinner

September 29th, 2014
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So early yesterday morning I found myself sitting in church once again mentally going over the week that had just past. I was happy to be quietly sitting in my pew and even happier that the priest who was saying Mass was someone I enjoy listening to. As the familiar and comforting celebration of Mass unfolded, I began to think about some of the things that I said or did that I wished I could take back: times when I was impatient, times when I offered my two cents when I should have kept my mouth shut, times when I… Read More

An Effortless Way To Warm Your Soul

September 26th, 2014
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  Mother Nature may be transitioning us from the warmth and abundance of summer into the cooler and shorter days of autumn, but local farmers are still offering us the bounty of their summer work. Yesterday at the Farmer’s Market near my downtown Washington, DC office, farmers were still selling peaches, zucchini and my personal favorite: tomatoes.  To me, nothing in the produce world beats a homegrown, fresh and ripe tomato.  Tomatoes are simply the best!! Despite what the calendar says, tomatoes are still plentiful right now and can be cooked and frozen as sauces or canned and eaten months… Read More

Lessons from the Spin Cycle

September 24th, 2014
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Photo via Pinterest   Whoa Nelly!! I know what this feels like, don’t you? It feels unexpected, awkward, a little uncontrollable and intense. As though at any moment, what you thought was stable becomes unstable. What you thought was predictable become unpredictable. Mood swings, spontaneous crying and having feelings change very quickly. I think of experiencing this mixture of feelings as being in a spin cycle if you will. When you are unsure of what is coming next.  It truly feels this way when grief has you on the run or a life changing trauma has taken your breath away.… Read More

The Ever-Changing Game of Life

September 22nd, 2014
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A Quote By Mary Oliver The wise quote above, written by Mary Oliver, seems on the surface to be expressing a rather obvious idea. Right? When I first read it, I almost dismissed it for I had brought Oliver’s thought into my mind too quickly and didn’t really let the underlying message sink in. Then I read it again and let it float around in my mind while I began to apply it to my own life. How many times do I go through the day rereading the chapter I read the day before?  In other words, if I keep… Read More

A Kitchen Dream Come True

September 19th, 2014
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You have to speak Your dream out loud.                ~ Kelly Corrigan Today is good news about holding on to your dreams and never giving up on them.  At the beginning of this year, I wrote about a dream of mine: to upgrade my kitchen (http://crylaughheal.com/dream-a-little-dream/). And guess what?  It is finally happening!! True to Kelly Corrigan’s inspirational saying above, I kept talking about it, researching it, saving for it and finally reached the point of giving the project a green light.  It’s been a bit scary watching the kitchen be totally demolished (I haven’t had a working oven, refrigerator or… Read More

An Amazing Gift To Yourself

September 17th, 2014
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For the past four years, I have been watching a member of my family refuse to forgive someone. Sounds incredible right? How could someone voluntarily lug around that much baggage every day?  How could someone consciously decide, all on their own, every day, that they would rather be angry with someone 24 hours a day, than try to fix the problem by opening up an honest dialogue and talking about it to the other person? How can you constantly refuse to accept the hundreds of apologies that have been offered? I guess it’s too hard.  I guess it’s too painful.  … Read More

4 Bodacious Roses

September 15th, 2014
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These days, I am all about finding natural ways to calm and quiet my thoughts.  Being around nature, and flowers in particular, has a calming and healing effect on my mood. Lavender is usually my “go to” scent for calming my jangled nerves but I also love the light and airy scent of roses.  When I take the time to be mindful of roses, each individual delicate petal, its soft colors and position of its bloom facing the sun, I am distracted from the noise around me and slowly begin to discover an inner stillness.  Sadly, at this time of… Read More

9/11: Healing & Resilience

September 11th, 2014
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On the thirteenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, my thoughts today are with the people whose lives changed so tragically and so dramatically when their loved ones died. It may not feel to them as if thirteen years has passed since this horrific event.  It may feel as though their loss happened yesterday.  That’s the trick that grief can sometimes play on us.  For no matter how much time has passed, no matter how much work has been put out to move the healing process forward, the anniversary of losing a loved one is a day filled with powerful conflicting… Read More