Love Connections

February 14th, 2017
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snow heart

Valentine’s Day may be what some people call a “Hallmark Holiday” but love is always worth celebrating whether you embrace all of the commercial hoopla or just quietly light a candle, give a meaningful hug or tap out a telephone number to connect with a special person.

Love gives us hope.  Love makes us feel all tingly inside and helps our resilient hearts beat a little faster.  Love is exciting.

Love is also risky.  To find it is definitely a roll of the emotional dice and, depending on the person, you may want to immediately throw the dice.  Or as … Read More

Take A Deep Breath

January 29th, 2017
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  Dear Resilient Friends: I have been away for awhile but have not forgotten about you.  2017 started off in a difficult direction for my family.  Both of our parents have been ill, requiring hospitalization and additional involvement from me and my five siblings.  We are striving every day to do our best to give loving care and attention to both parents, splitting our time between the hospital and our parents house often amidst a swirl of new medical terms and medicines while we carry on with our jobs and other personal responsibilities. We are trying to ease their pain… Read More

Me As Buddy The Elf

December 20th, 2016
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Photo Courtesy of Country Living This holiday season I feel a bit like Buddy from the popular Christmas movie, Elf. Remember the scene where Buddy the elf, who is magically played by Will Ferrell, travels from the North Pole to New York City to find his father and explains to his new family that elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corn and syrup? That would be me this holiday season.  Except for the candy corn, which I have never liked because I think it tastes like some kind of plastic or wax.… Read More

Give Yourself A Break

December 11th, 2016
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Giving is fun. Whether it’s something you meticulously made with your own hands or something you spent a long time searching for, giving to others is a wonderful feeling. I sometimes feel that giving a present to someone is more exciting than receiving. Watching the other person’s reaction while they are opening your gift is part of the fun and contributes to that good feeling of giving and letting them know they are special. During this holiday season, which can easily turn frantic as we get closer to the time of celebration, I think it is also important to give… Read More

Still Life With Bread Crumbs – Fiction

December 4th, 2016
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I recently finished reading Anna Quindlen’s amazing book, Still Life With Bread Crumbs, and I can’t stop thinking about the unexpected plot that Quindlen beautifully develops and weaves into the touching story about an older woman, Rebecca Winter, who discovers through various hardships that it is never too late to change up your life when you feel it isn’t working. Rebecca, like the rest of us, thinks she has an idea of where life is taking her but then life throws a number of unexpected changes her way and things don’t work out the way she thought it initially would.… Read More

Thankful Hearts

November 24th, 2016
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Wherever you happen to be gathering today, may you be with people who have thankful hearts and giving spirits. The diversity of Thanksgiving menus offered today reflects the healing powers of food, love, family and friends gathering with one celebration in mind.  Lasagna, Vietnamese soup or a traditional roasted turkey with all of the imaginable sides.  Today has been set aside on the national calendar to give thanks for the food and other gifts that are served and shared as a sign of gratitude for the many blessings we have received. While I recognize our desire to be thankful today,… Read More

A Bit of Hairspray Wisdom

October 14th, 2016
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Magical things happen to me in hair salons. My gray hair disappears, splint ends fall to the floor and I love watching clients and hairdressers exchange confidences that make each of them feel a little bit better about what is happening in their lives. This past weekend I experienced a different kind of magic; the magic of connecting and going with the flow of the moment. As I entered my tried and true hair salon, I was looking forward to a much needed hairdo transformation.  It was probably closer to a hair color intervention because the summer sun had bonded… Read More

Awesome Life Stories

September 8th, 2016
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Learning to Surf The Waves of Life Each of us has a story to tell about how our particular and significant lives have developed and unfolded over the years and it can be surprising how others decide to reveal pieces of these awesome life stories to us. The more I listen to people of all ages and cultures, the more I realize that we all have something in our lives that at some point has taken the wind out of us and made us question how we can continue on. Sometimes people tell you about their difficult circumstances over a… Read More

Princess Diana — 19 Years

August 31st, 2016
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Revealing your unfiltered feelings and becoming vulnerable to another person is not something anyone does easily, particularly when you are brokenhearted and trying to talk about the loss of a treasured loved one. I bring up the subject of talking about the loss of a loved one for today is the 19th anniversary of the tragic death of Princess Diana, one of the most iconic women of our time and one of her beloved sons, Prince William, who is now a parent himself, recently had a tender conversation with a young boy who had recently experienced the loss of his… Read More