Summer Squirt

June 27th, 2014
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

On the last Friday in June, here’s something to think about:

 

 The purpose of life,

after all,

is to live it,

to taste experience to the utmost,

to reach out eagerly and with out fear

for newer and richer experience

                            ~   Eleanor Roosevelt… Read More

Not To Worry

March 13th, 2014
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

Why is it that I think that worrying about something will affect the circumstances of the thing I’m  worrying about? It’s as though the more I worry about it, the more I think I can push the situation to go the way I want. My siblings and I talk a lot about worrying and why we worry.  Like A LOT.  As in a couple of times a week. It’s a good thing I come from a family of six children so we can rotate our calls to each other and no one ends up being burnt out from the constant… Read More

In Honor Of The Oscars

March 3rd, 2014
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

In honor of the Oscars last night, I’d like to give out a personal award.Last night’s Academy Awards speeches seemed to me to be particularly emotional, expressing the gratitude of recognition, the fulfillment of dreams and deep thanks for the years of incredible support that people received while working on their ground breaking film projects.It brought to mind for me the role that others play in our lives during difficult times and reminded me that support groups around the country are on the front lines of our communities, doing the nitty gritty, down and dirty and painful work of helping… Read More

Angelina’s Health Decision

May 15th, 2013
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

Angelina Jolie made a powerful decision.  It’s not a decision that every woman has the opportunity to make, but I stand and applaud her courage and wish her a future of wellness. Faced with medical information from her doctors that she had an 87 percent risk of developing breast cancer and a 50 percent risk of developing ovarian cancer because she carried the BRCA1 gene, she decided to take control of her health and be proactive.  She decided at the young age of 37 to have a double mastectomy which means she had both of her currently healthy breasts surgically… Read More

Anderson Cooper & His Mom

April 8th, 2013
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

I recently watched parts of  the Anderson Live! episodes that explored surviving loss and rebuilding your life in the aftermath.I found it touching and almost too private to watch Anderson Cooper and his mother talk about their personal reactions to the sudden loss of two very close loved ones from their lives.  I really wanted to know what they did to survive such shocking and tragic deaths but at the same time their thoughts were so candid that I almost wondered if they were aware that the cameras were rolling.It’s courageous and incredibly helpful for the greater good when celebrities… Read More

85 Year Old Friends

April 1st, 2013
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

All of my friends are gifts. Friendships, no matter what your age, are healing and can help you maintain your mental balance.   Friends connect you to the dynamics of life and all it has to give.  Friends keep me going and remind me what life is truly about.  Hashing the ups and down of life cements my friendships, for they help me try to make sense — or least laugh — at what has happed to me or to them. It’s always great to make new friends but there is something about the chemistry of an old friendship that is… Read More

God Bless The Child

July 10th, 2012
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

Children are not small adults who can basically raise themselves.  Children can be resilient but only to a point. Being the oldest of six children, having 35 first cousins and also being a mother has taught me that children are much smarter than we ever give them credit for, but that doesn’t mean that they understand all that is happening to them in their homes, schools or in the world at large. Their bodies, brains and emotions are still developing and they need all the love and guidance we can give them. I am a big believer in honesty when… Read More

Angels & Faith

June 4th, 2012
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

Faith is usually defined as having a confident belief in the truth of a person, idea or thing.  Faith is also defined as having a secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God’s will. Hmmmm….trusting acceptance.  For me that is always the part of faith that I am constantly working on.  I have been thinking a lot about faith these days and it’s role in my life.  I don’t know what the future will bring, but of course  I always hope and pray that it’s going to be something good. And if it’s not something good, then I… Read More

Laughing Matters

August 2nd, 2011
Posted By: Mary Kate Cranston

Friends Can Be Life Savers The most wasted of all days is one without laughter — e.e. Cummings  A few months ago on a Sunday afternoon, one of my friends and I met up for lunch at a neighborhood place that is casual and comfortable or as we say, the restaurant was “cheap and cheerful.”.  We both can be major league talkers but we both also understand the importance of listening so it’s not as though we are always talking over each other.  A lot of serious things were happening to both of us and we needed to commiserate. The… Read More