Posts Tagged: coping

Malala’s Light

October 14th, 2013
Posted By:

When the news first broke a year ago that 14-year old Malala Yousafzai had been shot in the head by the Taliban while sitting in a school bus all I could imagine was the extreme fear and chaos of that terrifying moment.

 

How could someone be so afraid of a child on her way to school?
Just by going to school, Malala defied the Taliban and its oppressive measures directed towards women by supporting education for girls in her small village in Pakistan’s Swat Valley.  That simple act made her a target.  Given the extreme nature of her injuries … Read More

The Light Between Oceans — Fantastic Fiction

October 11th, 2013
Posted By:

You know you’ve read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a friend ~ Paul Sweeney The above quote captures the way the way I felt when I recently finished reading, “The Light Between Oceans.” by M.L. Stedman. If you are looking for a book of fiction that will transport you to another time and place, then I would highly recommend “The Light Between Oceans” to you.  It is beautifully written and for a first novel, an amazing piece of storytelling. Essentially, it is a story of stunning loss,… Read More

The 64 Untalked About Ways of Grief

October 10th, 2013
Posted By:

People love to read lists.  I’m not sure why, but it could be because all of the best ideas relating to a particular subject are organized in one place.  Or maybe it’s because people want to see if what they guessed would be on the list is actually on the list. I think that sometimes lists are over used but not in this case. Today’s list comes from a wonderful website I recently discovered called What’s Your Grief? (www.whatsyourgrief.com) and I bet you a million dollars that you probably have never read a list like this one. Titled “64 Things… Read More

Wednesday Beats with Usher

October 9th, 2013
Posted By:

I don’t have much to say today.  It’s Wednesday and things in DC have been tense with the government shutdown and furloughed workers.  Unfortunately, I know a handful of people who are working but unsure as to when they will get paid. And that is why is it time for some uplifting music.  Did you know that music is a quick stress reliever?  I believe we can always make time for the beats and music makes almost everything bearable. I was lucky enough to see Usher perform live earlier this year at the Inaugural Ball this past January (that seems… Read More

Truly Breathing

October 8th, 2013
Posted By:

Breathing, centering, finding my inner peace.  That is what today is about. Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk, author, poet and peace activist. Just typing the combination of those words makes me feel calmer. I know that somewhere, under all the rushing and running around and multi-tasking is a peaceful inner core, and my aim is to find it. But first I have to create the conditions to get to it. What is the hurry? With the help of Thich Nhat Hanh’s quote below, I will decrease the speed with which I am living my life.  I… Read More

Here’s A Truth

October 7th, 2013
Posted By:

Here’s a truth:  when I write about the importance of being positive and finding positive inspiration in our lives and the idea of finding and doing new things, sometimes it is as much for me as it is for you. Please don’t ever get the idea that I always have it together and that I am always able to just forge ahead with my life without any hesitations or second guessing or ever feeling inadequate.  I have those feelings just as anyone.  Those feelings tend to sneak up on me when I least suspect it and I fight hard to… Read More

The Great Possession Debate

October 4th, 2013
Posted By:

Sometimes you find help in the most unpredictable places. Yesterday morning I was reading a column in The Washington Post called Home Front and came across a question from a reader that I thought was timely, on point and more importantly, one that we all probably will have to face at some point or another in our lives. The questioner wanted to know what to do with the possessions that once belonged to a loved one.  Specifically, the things that belonged to her father, who had recently died.  Inheriting a lifetime of someone else’s possessions can be overwhelming and increase… Read More

Changes At Arlington Cemetery

October 3rd, 2013
Posted By:

A cemetery is an intimate place. For me, it is a place where I let down my guard and become vulnerable to my feelings.  Sometimes I raise my arms to the sky as if saying that I am ready to let it all wash over me but other times I sit silently and close my eyes and try to center my thoughts. In the summertime when I visit my husband’s grave, I sometimes love to lay in the grass that covers where he is buried.  As I lay on my back looking up at the sky, I love to let… Read More

Cleaning Your Soul

October 1st, 2013
Posted By:

I know this is going to sound very old school but I’m going to come out with it anyway: sometimes if I want to feel better, I pull out the cleaning supplies and take a room apart. I fill a pan with hot soapy water, gather some rags and a few spray cleaners and I then I go for it! Over the weekend, I did this to my kitchen because something about the change in seasons was in the air and I looked around and thought I would feel better if I could clean away some of the dirt and… Read More