Traveling in Hope

February 23rd, 2015
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Wow! What a weekend! Here in Washington, DC, we received 6 to 8 inches of steady snow on Saturday but then by Sunday the temperatures rose up to the 40’s!  As my neighbor and I were out shoveling the slushy mesh, we both remarked that it was warm enough to take off our coats.

Today the temperatures are dropping back down again to February coldness so it just goes to show that you never know what Mother Nature is going to bring to us in terms of weather!  I also have that same kind of uncertain feeling about this upcoming … Read More

Torch By Cheryl Strayed

February 20th, 2015
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As soon as I finished reading Wild, Cheryl Strayed’s fantastic New York Times best-selling memoir (http://crylaughheal.com/wild-by-cheryl-strayed/), I wanted to read more of Stayed’s work. I enjoyed seeing Wild the movie and thought it should have received more attention in terms of nominations but what I really wanted was to read more of Strayed’s honest and direct thoughts about the gritty aspects of life and loss, what happens to us through our friendships and who and how we love. I wanted to read more of the her words, and the way she chooses to put them together.  I truly have never… Read More

Pajama Day

February 18th, 2015
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So many things to do and all day to do it. And the best part:  it all gets done while I’m still in my pj’s. Snow days are absolutely the best!! Yesterday the federal government was shut down, the schools were shut down, local buses were not running (at least not in the morning) and Metro was experiencing delays (what else is new!). Photo Courtesy of Reuters What’s a girl to do? Stay snuggled up at home.  Do work.  Check email.  Write responses.  Eat popcorn at 11 am. Cook a little. Go back to the trusty computer and do more… Read More

Creating An Oasis of Calm

February 16th, 2015
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When I read the above sign, I knew I was in the right place. Isn’t it just great? I love the simplicity and comfort of this message and the fact that it was posted on a black bench in the lobby of a local yoga studio where I took my first lesson over the weekend made the idea behind the message even better. I was in a new place about to begin a new experience but felt immediately welcomed. Taking off my shoes became the first step to creating a calming place for myself.  As I pulled my boots off… Read More

I Heart Chocolate

February 14th, 2015
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Happy Valentine’s Day!  I hope love and romance totally fill your day! For those whose sweetheart is no longer with them, I send you hugs and hope that great memories of your time together may warm or mend your precious heart. For myself, no romance or flowers are in sight today (maybe next year!), so I intend to have a good time and in that spirit, this post falls into the category of laughing at life, enjoying what I have and focusing on something else associated with Valentine’s Day: chocolate! Chocolate is healing?  Check. Chocolate is therapeutic? Check. Chocolate makes… Read More

A Plucky Poem of Resilience

February 11th, 2015
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// When I open my personal email early in the morning, one of my favorite things to see is an email from my son.  I don’t get them as much I did when he was in college because now I receive more text messages.  But still, receiving an email from him always makes me smile. The email that I write about today arrived over the weekend and in it my son wrote that a friend of his had seen the poem featured below and wanted to pass it along to me so that I could post it on Cry Laugh… Read More

A Stranger’s Human Thoughts

February 9th, 2015
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You never know what you are going to hear when you are getting your hair done. I was going about my usual weekend routine when a man reminded me that we as humans have more in common than we acknowledge.  Each of us are in different places and different phases, but most of us are trying to make sense of our lives, past and present, and each of us has something we are trying to work out and heal within ourselves. Grief, for all of its raw pain and turmoil, does teach us things about life.  I don’t mean for… Read More

Comforting My Peeps

February 5th, 2015
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“We are each other’s harvest; We are each other’s business: we are each other’s magnitude and bond.” ~ Gwendolyn Brooks  Care giving is on my mind these days as my siblings and I offer additional support to our parents. Giving care to those who are ill, to those who are babies, to those who are elderly and to those who are recuperating is one of the most selfless and loving acts a person can do for another.  Yet it can also be challenging for you, as the caregiver, are balancing so many mental and physical needs. The obvious ones are… Read More

Move To Heal

February 2nd, 2015
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February arrives and this new month begins with bitter cold weather, heavy skies that sometimes feel as if snow will be falling soon and thoughts that this month brings me closer to spring time and perhaps some warmth and outdoor color. These are the days when I really have to force myself to keep moving for all I really want to do is get on the couch and wrap a blanket around myself and snuggle for the rest of the day.  Okay, I admit I do lounge around for awhile but then I realize I’ve got to get up and… Read More