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

Step Into Every Blessed Second of Life

September 4th, 2013
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I know today is Wednesday and that I have to go to work. But other than that, I really don’t know what the day has in store for me. I’m sure I will talk to someone in my family and maybe also talk to one of my good friends, and I will work hard today to get some tasks accomplished in the office that need my attention. Some of what happens today is up to me. How will I react as I drive to work? Will I keep a smart remark to myself or feel the need to blurt it… Read More

Insight From Grey’s Anatomy

September 3rd, 2013
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I was clicking around on Pinterest (which is truly a guilty pleasure!!!) yesterday and found this insightful and timely quote on one of my niece’s boards. How true! Grief is unpredictable!  And that’s why people don’t like to talk about it, or acknowledge it, and hope, hope, hope, that it will go away all on its own. But Cry, Laugh, Heal is all about having an honest dialogue about grief and resilience and sharing what helped me after my husband sadly died nine years ago.  I have found that time and support from friends and family have helped me but … Read More

Newtown On Labor Day

September 2nd, 2013
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Today is Labor Day and I have the day off from work.  YEAH!!! I hope you do too! Maybe you are planning to go to a friend’s house for a special holiday meal or you are going to cook for your family.  Or maybe you’re just hangin’ at your own house catching up on personal projects.  Or maybe you’re going to go to an afternoon picnic or watch a community parade. In Newtown, Connecticut today, there will be a parade.  A parade of love and community and healing. It will be same parade that thousands of residents have watched and… Read More

Seamus Heaney

August 31st, 2013
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Seamus Heaney, a celebrated and grand Irish poet who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995, sadly died yesterday in a hospital in Dublin at the age of 74. Irish Poet And Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney To say that Heaney had a way with words is an understatement.  His powerful verse transported readers around the world to Ireland and sometimes to its rural landscape and the grind of its daily responsibilities.  To me, his phrasing always felt magical and lyrical no matter what subject he addressed. As a tribute to Heaney’s great talents, here is Digging, one of my… Read More

Tossing My Plastics

August 30th, 2013
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Staying healthy is job one for me. Every healthy tip that I can incorporate into my life is just one more thing that may keep me out of the doctor’s office as far as I am concerned.  I try to eat foods that are as fresh as possible, exercise whenever I can and verbalize my stress so that it doesn’t remain bottled up inside me and cause some kind of sickness.Recently I added a new health concern to my wellness list: avoiding plastics and/or preservatives.For years I used to bring frozen food products (read Lean Cuisine) to the office and… Read More

Sea of Turquoise

August 29th, 2013
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Today is about tranquility, the quality of being calm. Enter a sea of turquoise. . . And take a deep breath And exhale. . . You could do it all here: cry, laugh and heal!   Photo Courtesy of House of Turquoise… Read More

50th Anniversary of March on Washington

August 28th, 2013
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“Our goal was not to gain power.  It was to heal a torn-up community.” ~ Diane Judith Nash, a civil rights leader Marching for your human rights and dignity is healing.  It is an act of restoring faith in yourself and your community. Marching is also rewarding for the human spirit and good for the human soul.  Standing up for your rights confirms for you that you are not alone in your feelings; that others share your thoughts and emotions. Peacefully marching, holding protest signs and delivering passionate speeches gives rise to feelings of respect for those who are declaring,… Read More

My Baby Doesn’t Want This Letter

August 27th, 2013
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You can file the following under silly, sad, ridiculous or just plain ole unnecessary and inefficient. I came home from work yesterday and, as I usually do, picked up the mail from the door slot and started going through it.  Monday’s mail is usually thin and this time it was no exception.  A few real estate solicitation cards, a catalog and even a letter from a friend. But there was also a curious piece of mail addressed to my husband.  My husband who died nine years ago.  My husband whose name I would think at this point would show up… Read More