In awesome wonder of peace and quiet, and bathrooms
“I can’t wait to have some peace and quiet,” mother would say when the noise of raising five children got the best of her. “You kids are driving me batty” was another of among her “Joanisms” –...
View ArticleFive Things I learned from Mother about getting back up after life’s hard knocks
IT’S NOT FAIR. Shouting those words only led to hearing her say, “Life isn’t fair”. I despised hearing those words back in my elementary days, as she sent me off with a hug. I wanted her to fix...
View Article3 ways military kids benefit from life after loss
Military families relocate 10 times more often than civilian families — on average, every 2 or 3 years. More than 900,000 children have experienced the deployment of one or both parents multiple times....
View ArticleBreak the Cycle of Learned Helplessness – It’s not rocket science
The learned helplessness theory was first proposed as a model to explain depression in humans. Psychologist Martin Seligman initiated the research in 1967 with three groups of dogs. When group 3 pushed...
View ArticleOne drop at a time, there is a season for everything
There is an appointed time for everything. And, there is a time for every event under heaven; a time to give birth and a time to die. The hope of a new birth arrived at our door on Mother’s Day, and...
View ArticleFour Simple Truths About Stepping Back and Tuning Out
I have said it before. Gather some friends, throw your problems in a pile, take a good look, and chances are you will grab yours back. It seems everywhere we turn, everyone is going through something....
View ArticleNever settle – There’s more to life, at any age
Every day, every time I step inside the doors of elder care, I must dig down deep and find what works. My manta begins, “don’t settle for being old, fat, sick, and nearly dead” – there is a better way...
View ArticleSour grapes, onions and silver linings
Dear younger me, Life will hand you 3 things consistently: Sour grapes, onions, and silver linings. In fact, if you are fortunate to live long you will accumulate a stock-pile of these things. All...
View ArticleLife is Dirty, Mud Pies are Optional
I will go visit Santa today, bearing gifts of love and encouragement. It is time for him to receive instead of give. No need to travel to the North Pole! He is just five minutes away. Through familiar...
View ArticleReady, Set, Aim … Wait!
Ready, set, aim … just you wait! That is how it is panning out. It started again this morning, when the toilet clogged up. Not a great visual to start off a blog post, is it? But as I stood there with...
View Article7 Easy Filters to Magnify Peacefulness
On Aug. 21, 2017, skies darkened from Oregon to South Carolina in the first total solar eclipse visible from coast to coast across the United States in 99 years. The totality of the moon covering the...
View ArticleLook for the helpers, there you will see hope
How can I possibly help in so much devastation? The question floods our minds perhaps as much as the images of recent disasters. Wild fires, hurricanes, and earthquakes have some questioning “where is...
View ArticleSpark of Hope #131 – Morning Has Broken
Spark of Hope #131 – Morning Has Broken … the song lyrics danced through my mind like refreshment to my spirit as we carpooled into Eglin Air Force Base. THIS morning felt different as I viewed the...
View ArticleSpeaking Roses, Inspiring Change, Blooming Hope
Roses are red (and white and yellow and …), Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet, And so are you. The origins of the poem can be traced back to the year 1590, written by Sir Edmund Spenser. Historically,...
View Article3 Ways to Blow Today Out of the Water
Whatever you are facing, take a chance on sharing it with someone else. It might just blow your day out of the water. Interpretation of failure matters much more than the act of failing. If we get...
View ArticleA Missing Link in Veterans Day, and beyond
What comes to mind when you consider Veterans Day? Freedom and liberty, oath of service, commitment to others, sacrifice, military honors … are a few of the words to describe our nation’s veterans....
View Article5 Steps in This Journey of Thanks & Giving
Making a grocery list of our Thanksgiving favorites inspired me to make a second list, one of thanks and giving. I am entering my family’s first holiday season without mom. Emotions are mixed but there...
View ArticleTake Your Nose out of the Book and into the World
America’s children will spend between 900 and 1,000 hours each year in the classroom. By graduation time, students will have amassed 14,256 hours of knowledge (excluding kindergarten and preschool...
View ArticleAmplify the Spirit of Christmas with Service, Sacrifice, and Santa
Our team comes together, every December, ready to carry on “The Stocking Project” with humbleness of heart. It is as if we step onto a path of miracles otherwise missed. What began as a cancer...
View Article4 Ways to Cope When the Storm Hits
There are ready-made checklists to help families prepare and cope with severe storms (go here). Severe winter storms are like a mirror of life’s inevitable storms. We can prepare (in case) or be caught...
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