Posts Tagged: hope

Forgiveness

April 5th, 2013
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Someone close to me is emotionally stuck on certain negative events that happened in her life decades ago.  She talks about them in great detail and tells others how she felt when these things happened to her.  Listening over and over again to her retelling of these events doesn’t seem to help her move forward and get past what happened.
It’s as though she has a list in her head and she mentally checks these things off every day to remind herself that someone did something wrong to her.  It is sad and frustrating to watch someone concentrate on the … Read More

Seeking Support

March 28th, 2013
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Having spent almost two years going to group grief counseling sessions, I am a big believer in talking about the dicey life issues troubling you. Whether it’s grief, drug or alcohol addiction, weight issues or marriage problems, talking can help because you are taking your issues out of the dark and shining light on them for everyone to see.  You’re not hiding your issues and acting as though everything is okay and being handled well.The idea of being part of a support group can seem very intimidating. It was not an easy decision for me: in talking about my pain,… Read More

Public Tears

March 21st, 2013
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I’ve done it in the grocery store in the applesauce aisle.  I’ve also done it while walking down 17th Street, NW and on the Metro platform at Farragut North. What have I done? Crying in public.  And you know what? When I was doing it, I could have cared less about who I ran into or what I looked like.  I was in the throes of grief and I had either heard a song that reminded me of my husband or was coming from a situation where no one acknowledged my loss or what was happening to me. When I… Read More

Making A New Bedroom

March 18th, 2013
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On the weekends, I like to try and organize myself.Sometimes I succeed in my de-clutter efforts and sometimes I don’t.  During the work week, I have a very bad habit of throwing clothes and papers into piles.  By the time the weekend rolls around, I know I have to deal with the piles and hang stuff up and throw things away. This past weekend marked a milestone for me because I just had my bedroom painted and most of the stuff that was under my bed,  hanging on wall and door hooks and on top of my furniture was in… Read More

Simply Notice

February 28th, 2013
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Crocus Signaling A New Season The grand essentials in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.            ~ Joseph Addison (1672-1719) Today is the last day of February and that makes me smile.  I am not one to hurry time along, but in this case I am happy to see the arrival of the month of March.  I love a longer day when the sun is warmer and daylight lasts until 8 or 9 o’clock in the evening. I hadn’t noticed that the seasons were starting change until the other morning when I had… Read More

Wishing You Serene Thoughts. . .

January 22nd, 2013
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Look Well To This Day Look well to this day, For it and it alone is life. In its brief course Lie all the essence of your existence: The Glory of Growth The Satisfaction of Achievement The Splendor of Beauty For yesterday is but a dream, And tomorrow is but a vision. But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, And every tomorrow a vision of hope.… Read More

A Merry Christmas Message

December 25th, 2012
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Merry Christmas Dear Readers, May you and your loved ones have a very Merry Christmas! The holiday season may remind you of a special person who is no longer with you, just as I am reminded of my husband who died nine years ago.  Our lives have been forever changed and so have we. But there is always hope for a renewed future; a future that we can purposely rebuild so that we may move forward.  You are not alone. We bring our loved ones with us as we slowly figure out our new lives and as we do, we… Read More

Finding Grief Support

October 24th, 2012
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I recently went back to the beginning of Cry Laugh Heal and read my the first post from 2010 and it brought all the crazy grieving feelings back to me: exhaustion, numbness, raw emotions, the scary future and sometimes even laughter! But it also reminded how great my support group was during that time and how it gave me the priceless gift of hope and helped me feel that life really would get better (somehow?!?!) even though my sweetheart of a husband died.  As I met with my small group twice a month, some sessions were incredibly upsetting and some… Read More

Aren’t You Over It Yet?

October 3rd, 2012
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I am Catholic but I often find strength and wisdom in the teachings of other religions.  We’re all here in the same boat and we’re all here to get along, so why not reach out and see what we can learn from each other? With that thought in mind, I am sharing a short insightful piece that a friend gave to me.   It is written by a rabbi and I found his thoughts to be very comforting.  I hope you do too: Getting Over It By Rabbi Earl A. Grollman My wife died fourteen months ago.  Even though I don’t… Read More