My mother died at the end of 2019 and I wrote this piece but never published it. This morning, I thought about the people who may be scared to say they are happy about someone passing. Scared to acknowledge the relief they feel. This is for them. My mom died and I am happy. I could justify this statement by telling you facts such as this: She didn’t want to live anymore. She missed my dad. She wanted to go. She wasn’t in pain at the end and she died in her sleep. I could tell

“Everyone lies in the ER.” That statement stayed in my head long after the fear, panic and state of emergency had lessened. It seems as if we all end up in an emergency room at some point in our lives, either as the person in agony, or the advocate for said person. We recently had two very serious emergencies which led to frantic rushing to emergency rooms. The first to a city hospital. The second to hospital closer to home. As afternoon passed into evening on the day of the

Wayne Dyer said, “What other people think of me is actually none of my business.” My mother would NEVER EVER have understood this statement. EVERY PERSON’S opinion about us mattered, and all opinions mattered more than our own. I grew up with, What did they say? What did they say about your new coat? What did they say about your project, hair, sweater, shoes, mom, dad and on and on until I wanted to fall to the floor and beg for mercy. At one point, when I was perhaps sixteen

“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” - Desmond Tutu 2020. The unimaginable happened and the world shut down. As we tried to take it all in, scrambled to feed our families and homeschool our children, the news kept coming at us. Then in May, we, as a nation, had to face our country’s deep-seated racism in the ugliest way imaginable as we witnessed the murder of George Floyd. Families have suffered through job loss, sickness and death dur

Life that is. And it just did. All of a sudden, we are in the middle of a crisis and it is scary, daunting and so very confusing. This is LIFE. Recently, I remembered a thought that came to me a few years ago. “What if I hadn’t broken my neck?” My heart actually sped up a bit and I stopped moving. I felt a stab of fear. Fear of what would have happened if I hadn’t suffered a life-threatening injury. Strange as it sounds, breaking my neck was actually one of the best things th

I start my mornings with Louise Hay. I also listen to her during the day and many times before I fall asleep. As I listen to her, I pretend she is my Mom. When she tells me she loves me and encourages me to love myself, I say thank you. I still do this even though she passed away recently. Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life, Founder of Hay House Publishing, Miraculous Soul, Amazing Woman and the Queen of Affirmations, changed my life. I am a better person because of

I have been feeling so sad about what happened in Las Vegas. As a sensitive person, it can be difficult to protect myself from feelings of pain and sorrow.  It wasn’t until yesterday that I remembered I had written about Hope after the shootings in the Orlando nightclub. I went back to the post that I wrote on June 14th, 2016 after the murderous assaults. I thought maybe my own words would reassure me. The startling fact is that the entire post could have been written about t

Every time I attend a yoga class, I think, “Why aren’t I doing this every single day?” I always leave yoga classes feeling better. I am calmer, more centered, and actually, a little friendlier. Life feels…manageable. I have been practicing yoga for almost 20 years. There are quite a few lessons I have learned over the years and one of the most important is that there is power in taking the time to just BE. This is not an easy thing to do. The mind wants to do what the mind wa

Reading ahead in my book, I spotted this message. I thought about how important it is right now, today, in our world, to do this. Understanding  has to start somewhere, and why not with each of us? We have seen the effects of hate. Let’s try love. December 11th Focus on Kindness and Understanding Many people are worried and distracted. You may be, too. Happy Action: Try to focus on kindness and understanding. People may be rude. You can control your reaction. Set the example

First things first. Do not make reducing your stress one more thing on the to-do list. If you know you are under stress, you need to address it with love, realism and gentleness. Here are just a few of the ways that stress can manifest itself in your life: Weight Gain/Weight Loss Sleep problems Alcohol abuse Adrenal Fatigue Eczema Food Cravings Mood swings Obsessing Inappropriate reactions to events Heart Palpitations Do any of these resonate with you? Do you notice any of th