Posts Tagged: resilience

Paying Respects @WTC

March 14th, 2012
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On a bright and beautiful Sunday morning this past weekend in New York City, I finally had an opportunity to visit the memorial site for the World Trade Center.

With my brother, sister-in-law and their 12-year-old daughter, we took a taxi to the 8-acre site in lower Manhattan where the infamous Twin Towers once stood.  The site is deceiving because construction fences surround the area and you can’t see the two black stone squares containing the waterfalls or even hear the waterfalls from the road.  It just looks like a regular construction site.

Getting to the memorial site is a … Read More

Moving Forward With Friends

March 7th, 2012
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Award winning actresses Viola Davis (left) and Octavia Spencer (right) in a scene from the Academy Award nominated film, “The Help” “The person who tries to live alone will not succeed as a human being. His heart withers if it does not answer another heart. His mind shrinks away if he hears only the echoes of his own thoughts and finds no other inspiration.”           — Pearl S. Buck… Read More

Happy Friday!

March 2nd, 2012
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As I recouperate from the cold and cough that kicked in at the beginning of the week, I’m beginning to feel better so thank you for your good thoughts.  Plus it’s Friday so that automatically doubles my good feelings! I hope everyone is looking forward to the weekend and even if you don’t have any specific activity planned, quiet time can be good and so essential in building up mental reserves.  Or maybe I’m thinking of my own need for peace and quiet and restful times. As we work our way through Friday and slide into the weekend, here’s a… Read More

Something To Think About

March 1st, 2012
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In the midst of your grieving, be patient with yourself and others   and   do something kind for yourself each day.   Be sure to ask for help when you need it.   You are loved!… Read More

Brenda Frese’s Positive Thinking

February 29th, 2012
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When you are raising a family it is easy to get caught up in working too hard to provide for them.  Most people want to improve their family’s quality of life and it’s natural to want to give your family the material things in life that can bring excitement and joy to them.  But in the end, they are just things.  Things can’t hold your hand, tell you they love you or bring you inner peace. In the daily process of making a living, I try to put the brakes on myself and ask myself why I am working so… Read More

Ash Wednesday

February 22nd, 2012
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I hope everyone had a blast yesterday at whatever Mardi Gras event you might have attended for today is Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of Lent.  You might have let the good times roll too much and are feeling  some pain and discomfort today from too much alcohol, food or lack of sleep but the good news is that you can offer it up as your lenten penance.  OMG, doesn’t that sound like something a Catholic school nun would have told you? For those of you who are not Catholic, today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent,… Read More

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda

February 17th, 2012
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We’ve all played the game of “woulda, shoulda, coulda” and no one ever wins. If you weren’t with your loved one when their death occurred, you might be thinking about all of the things that would be different if you had been there.  You’re thinking about how your present life might be very different if you had been with your loved one at their time of death. You might even think you could have prevented it from happening.  “I could have done more” “If only I had gone for a visit earlier/later in the day,” “I should have stayed with… Read More

Free Your Mind

February 16th, 2012
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When life throws unexpected changes at you and all the cards seem to have been thrown in the air, it could be an opportunity for growth.  Initially, it may not feel like a chance for something good to happen, but with time, something unexpected may reveal itself.  Once you start to feel as though you can manage your feelings, then you can move forward to try something different: volunteer, paint, or play music.  Research has shown that attitude towards oneself and the world is the key to managing stress.  Here is an exercise that I found that might help you change your… Read More

Take Good Care Of My Heart

February 14th, 2012
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Courtesy of United States Postal Service Decades ago, the CEOs of florist, chocolate and card companies must have been having a long liquid lunch and launched the ingenious idea of launching a fun holiday called Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day happens to be one of those holidays that has never been a big deal to me because it always feels forced.  I don’t want someone to give me chocolates, flowers or a card because they feel they have to do what everyone else is doing.  It means a lot more to me when the person I’m romantically involved with comes up… Read More