Posts Tagged: resilience

Change, Changed & Changing

May 28th, 2011
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Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.
— Author James Baldwin

Isn’t it tiresome being a one-person team?  Don’t you wish that sometimes you could delegate all of your errands and responsibilities to someone else?  Please, please don’t make me…….

I would love to be irresponsible; not permanently, but just for a short amount of time.  I would love to take a break from the constant decision making and problem solving; to get in the car and drive somewhere and escape for a bit.

red convertible

Please join me if you feel, … Read More

Mom is “WOW” Upside Down

May 8th, 2011
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Happy Mother’s Day to my Mom and all the incredible Moms, GrandMoms and other women around the globe who do the most important job in the world!! Some of you out there may disagree, but I challenge you to find another job that comes close to being as rewarding. If your Mom is no longer with you, I hope the loving memories you have of her make you smile today. Being a Mom is the journey of a lifetime.  From the bottom of my heart, I have cherished every minute of being a mother to my son who is now… Read More

Connecting The Grief Dots

May 7th, 2011
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Grief is a lot of work.  I know that sounds ridiculous but it’s true. And some days I just don’t want to deal with it.  Or be reminded of it. Those days would especially include when I have to fill out a government or school form for my son or myself and instead of writing his father’s name, I have to write in “deceased.”  That hurts. Or I get to pick from the selections of my status: single, married, divorced or widowed.  After eight years, you would think I would be used to answering these questions but it still pulls… Read More

The Twin Towers, the Pentagon & Flight 93

May 3rd, 2011
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When President Obama officially announced on television late last night that Osama bin Laden had been killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan, my thoughts went immediately to the relatives and friends of the thousands of people whose lives were lost in the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and Flight 93. For almost ten years, these people have been trying to put the pieces of their shattered lives back together so that they may heal and perhaps build some kind of a future after having their loved ones violently taken from them. I wondered how and what they were feeling now that… Read More

Home Sweet Home — Options For Housing Alternatives

April 23rd, 2011
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For some reason, people think that becoming a widow and moving to a new place to live go hand-in-hand.  I’m not quite sure why this is, but it’s one of the most common questions asked of a newly widowed person.  In fact, someone once joked that maybe real estate agents and funeral directors network off the same list of people. I guess the questions, “When are you moving?” or “When are you selling your house?” are asked so often because people may be nervous about what to say around you so they end up blurting out questions like these.  Or… Read More

Finding Your New Voice

April 17th, 2011
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I’m probably one of the last people to see the Academy-award winning movie, “The King’s Speech,” before it goes to DVD, so please bear with me while I applaud this special film and what I learned from it. This incredible movie tells the true life story of England’s King George VI and his unexpected ascension to the throne; all the while desperately working to overcome a painful and frustrating stutter.  The story works on so many levels it is hard to know where to begin but I think the story itself is so human and would still be powerful even… Read More

To Party Or Not

April 10th, 2011
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This year I have had two large parties at my house…and to my surprise, I have enjoyed myself.  One was for a family member who was celebrating a BIG birthday and the other was on New Year’s Day for my son and my best friends.  This may not sound like a big deal — but it is. With the exception of family events that happened after my husband’s death, I haven’t been ready to celebrate anything or plan for a party that would take place just to have fun.  In order to give a party, you have to be ready… Read More

The Golden Globes — A Beautiful Song

January 20th, 2011
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The multi-talented singer songwriter Jewel At The Golden Globes While watching the Golden Globes this past Sunday night, I was reminded of a beautiful song that the singer/songwriter Jewel performed in 2010 during the “In Memorium” section of the program.  Jewel said she wrote the song, titled “A Hole In My Heart,” about a friend who had recently passed away. Thanks to Google, I found the lyrics to her touching song and thought I would share them with you: “A Hole In My Heart” By Jewel September settled softly Leaves are starting to fall I recall, last time you were… Read More

Clothes To You

December 23rd, 2010
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With the today’s launch of Cry, Laugh, Heal, I’ll start by sharing an unexpected moment that helped me cope with my husband’s death. Grieving can take you down some unpredictable paths — sometimes revealing humor where you least expect it. I learned the importance of having a sense of humor early in life while growing up in a large Irish Catholic family.  If you couldn’t laugh at yourself, then someone else would imitate you until you did.  So laughing and making jokes about life’s bumps in the road was part of my DNA, an integral part of my spirit, and… Read More