My Community My Peeps

November 21st, 2014
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One of the most important things you can have when you are grieving is a community of support.

We all need, and I hope you have, a group of people who offer comfort and understanding through thick and thin.  They care enough about you to know when you need the space for solitude,  when you need a shoulder to cry on and when you need a hug. They also know when you need a laugh and some good ole retail therapy.  Our human connections give us emotional strength and can help to renew us in times of pain and vulnerability.… Read More

Hope For The Holidays

November 19th, 2014
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These are challenging times that we live in and for those who are in the midst of grief, the arrival of the holidays can make life a lot more challenging. Thanksgiving is next week and decorations and other holiday reminders are already popping up everywhere.  You may already be dreading this time of year because you know the holidays can be an emotional minefield.  Reminders of your loved one can sometimes present themselves when you least expect it. It can be a song, a smell, the house where you are celebrating or even a story that someone may tell.  It… Read More

A New Project on Amazon

November 12th, 2014
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Hey there Resilient Readers: This morning I am very excited to share news with you about a project which started last year and is now completed!! It’s a new ebook about grief and I am included (Cry Laugh Heal is Chapter 21; don’t worry the chapters are short!) along with other bloggers and writers whose work I consider to be truly fantastic!  I am beyond flattered to be included in this wonderful project that we hope will help others in their grief. The book is titled “From Grief To Greatness” and it was written and organized by a great guy… Read More

The Infectious Laughter of Tom Magliozzi

November 5th, 2014
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Everybody needs a good laugh and I know I could always get one every Saturday morning when I turned my radio on to NPR’s award-winning program, “Car Talk.” You might think it’s unusual for a woman to be listening to a program where two guys talk for about an hour about cars and their problems.  But for me, “Car Talk” was pure entertainment.  Oh my goodness, did they know how to have a good time! Tom and Ray understood the power of humor, that the ability to laugh at life and yourself is a tremendous resource for binding people together… Read More

A Poem Of Comfort

October 27th, 2014
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Today I send heartfelt prayers to a wonderful woman and mother of three children who has been a close friend of my family’s for decades and is tragically in the process of saying good-bye to her beloved husband currently being taken care of in an ICU unit of a local hospital. I know that words cannot take away her deep pain but I send them in hopes that they may bring some small measure of comfort.  Perhaps there is someone in your life who is also bearing a burden of sorrow and is in need of words that lets them… Read More

Five Lessons From the Marvelous Mindy Kaling

October 24th, 2014
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Dear Resilient Readers, I write a lot about the need to rebuild or recreate our lives after experiencing a loss or traumatic life event because it can be frightening and something people would rather not discuss.  In hopes of helping others, I have written about what worked for me but I also try to pass along helpful anecdotes from people who have worked hard to put themselves on that same healing path. I know for myself that the secret to finding a new way to live my life after my husband died was in taking each day, and sometimes each… Read More

Creative Healing

October 22nd, 2014
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Photo By Patti RaabBlue Grotto Isle of Capri I find the word healing to be a comforting word.  You know how there are some words that when you say them or read them they just make you feel better, more peaceful?  Well, that’s the way that I feel about the word healing. When I think about healing, I feel as though I have softly placed a cozy blanket around myself.  Protected.  I could be with someone I care about or I could be by myself.  But when I think about coming to a place of healing I think about using… Read More

Your Truck Is Now My Truck

October 15th, 2014
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I admit up front that I’m arriving late to the party that has been going on ever since the release of American country singer Lee Brice’s memorable hit song, “I Drive Your Truck.” It’s hard to believe but I just recently discovered this poignant and healing song that was awarded Song of the Year honors at the 47th annual Country Music Association Awards, as well as Song of the Year at the 49th annual Academy of Country Music Awards was released in 2012.  I don’t know what I was doing at the time this song hit the airwaves but I… Read More

Grief in ShondaLand

October 10th, 2014
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Every week when I join fellow Gladiators to tune in to Scandal, ABC’s groundbreaking hit series created by the multi-talented award-winning writer Shonda Rhimes, I anticipate seeing fast-paced cutting edge programming about political corruption, espionage, murder, all kinds of sexual affairs and even some weird and bloody torture. It all feels very forbidden and unpredictable which is what I think makes Scandal such great television. And if the topics above aren’t enough to keep us guessing about the fate of Scandal’s characters, we can now add grief to the list of forbidden subjects that Scandal masterfully airs. It is surprising… Read More