Living Your Life

A Pope of Hope

September 23rd, 2013
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From Southern Maryland to Northern Virginia, everywhere I went this past weekend people were talking about Pope Francis and his  recent groundbreaking remarks about the state of the Catholic Church.
Pope Francis, you are a healing breath of fresh air and you arrived on the global scene just when we needed to listen your joyous and merciful outlook on life!!
It was amazing to me that people spontaneously brought it up in conversation no matter what else was previously being talked about.  I find religion is sometimes discussed at social events but not very often.  And in Washington, DC, rarely … Read More

Can You Hug Too Much?

September 20th, 2013
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Hugs……They’re so healing!We hug when we see someone we really like and haven’t seen in a while; we hug when it’s time to say good-bye. We hug to show we care; we hug to let the other person know we are on their team. We hug to send a special message to another person that they are not alone.  They have a friend; someone who cares what happens to them. We hug to comfort.  We hug to love. We hug because we are human and part of a larger community. We are here to hug.  Each other.  All the time.… Read More

Never Look Away

September 19th, 2013
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When you consider the amount of emotional baggage we all carry around with us, it is amazing that we find love. Wounded though our hearts may be, we cannot fight the attraction and pull of another person who catches our fancy. Maybe you have been lucky and found love more than once. I found love with a small l a few times, but found love with a capital L only once.  It’s an amazing, powerful, crazy thing this love emotion that takes us over and keeps us going and truly defines our lives.  It is not to be treated lightly,… Read More

Washington DC Navy Yard Shootings

September 17th, 2013
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There was something about the first email news alert that came into my work computer yesterday morning at 9:01 a.m. “Reports of an active shooter at Navy Yard area.  Avoid that area.” I don’t know if it was the time of day, the location of the shooter or the fact that it was a Monday that made me stare at the email and think, “This is bad.”  Unsure of what parts of the city my colleagues planned to go for meetings or appointments, I immediately forwarded the Navy Yard email to everyone in my office. The “active shooter” the email… Read More

George Carlin’s Observations

September 12th, 2013
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Every day is an opportunity, right? I try to keep this simple but positive thought with me as much as possible even if I am having a really sh#*tty day. I try to learn some useful lesson from the incredible number of mistakes I constantly make and then I push myself to move on to the next thing. That’s why a new day is so great.  We all get to try and do it all over again and maybe this time even try it a different way. A new day means I have the opportunity of 24 new hours in… Read More

Time Stands Still on Sept. 11

September 11th, 2013
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Time will stand still for me this morning around 8:45 a.m. when the clock will remind me that twelve years ago today, the first plane, a hijacked American Airlines jet flying out of Boston, crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center, setting into motion national events and policies that permanently changed the way we as a nation live. All I need to do is look at a picture of the Twin Towers and it all comes back to me.  Not only the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers in New York City, but also the terrorist attack… Read More

Turn Around Solitary Man

September 9th, 2013
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I felt very lucky and very blessed to be sitting in my worn and comfortable beach chair early yesterday morning, breathing in the soft air of Bethany Beach and watching the tide come in as the waves pounded the sand. For me, sun, sand and ocean are the essential elements for getting rid of worrisome and stressful thoughts and filling my inner reserves with hope and gratitude.  It’s a winning combination every time I need it.  The beach has never let me down.  Ever. I was in Bethany Beach this past weekend to help a very good friend sell her… Read More

Alicia Keys — Listen To Your Heart

September 6th, 2013
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My new thing is to listen to Alicia Key’s “Girl On Fire” CD on my way to work. Alicia Keys is amazing!  I have loved her music from the first time I heard her groundbreaking song, “Fallin”,  on the radio about 10 years ago.  I didn’t know who she was but I googled and youtubed until I found out.  I have been lucky enough to see her perform live twice and that is the best!! Alicia Keys “Girl On Fire” CD She has a beautiful, smooth, soulful voice, is an incredible songwriter and her music pulls you into some kind… Read More

It’s All About Our Stuff

September 5th, 2013
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Earlier this week I wrote about finding my deceased husband’s tweed jacket in the back of a guest room closet and what it felt like to discover it. Now, unfortunately, it’s time to say good-bye to his Irish wool jacket.  It doesn’t fit my son and the jacket doesn’t really hold any special meaning for him.  Even though it once belonged to my husband, I have arrived at that point in my life where I know I can’t save everything that holds meaning for me.  Some things you just have to set free into the universe. In my head, I … Read More