We all grieve. Everyone loses someone or something critical, and those losses come back to remind us of our grief on the holidays. We can choose to deep dive into that grief and be miserable, or we can choose to do something with those memories that can bring us joy. I choose joy. While I […]
Read MoreNever Forget My Daddy. Celebrating Veteran’s Day this week, I remember my Daddy who served on a ship in the Philippines during World War II. Mom and Dad were married and had a baby, my sister Linda, when he was called to serve. Our family lived in Porterville, a small central California town, where he […]
Read MoreGrowing up in central California, I heard of a town named Paradise, and I wanted to live there. I looked it up in the library and saw that it was a beautiful town with majestic trees. I loved the idea of getting out of the heat in the high desert where I lived and moving […]
Read MoreIf you are afraid of dying, I encourage you to examine your feelings. I had the privilege with being with both of my husbands, my aunt, my mother-in-law, friends, and patients at the moment of their passing. In all of those cases, when it came right down to it, I sensed great peace. Well, except […]
Read MoreThis morning Michelle asked me if we ever stop grieving. I responded that we don’t, but it does soften into a beautiful part of our lives instead of a constant pain. When each of my husbands died, I lost track of space and time, and I don’t remember how long that lasted. Gradually, time started […]
Read MoreI learned about the importance of moving my body after I stopped. For a long time before Ron died, his mobility was limited because of his health. I stayed close to him to help as needed, so my mobility became limited, too. Then when he died, I pretty much stopped moving all together. I had […]
Read MorePicture your absolutely favorite food. What does it smell like? What does it look like? What does it taste like? Imagine sitting at your table beautifully set and that perfect food before you. Place one bite in your mouth. Savor it. Experience what it feels like in your mouth. Gently swallow that bite. And sit […]
Read MoreWe all have friends, some more than others. We talk to some of our friends every day. Other close friends can go for years without being in touch, but when they reconnect, it’s just like no time has passed. When we get to the point where we live alone, friends are more important than […]
Read MoreI lived in California before we moved to Maui. At that time, and still really, there was a drought. Our beautiful, green state had grown brown and dusty. We were encouraged to pull out all the grass in our yards and plant drought tolerant succulents. Now succulents are beautiful, come in an amazing variety, and […]
Read MoreHolidays present a special challenge to those grieving. Especially hard are the first ones that come by for the first time after a loved one departs. I realized that I was just ignoring the season when my first Christmas came. I had made the effort to create a Christmas card with a drawing I had […]
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