“Tears are words that need to be written.” ~Paulo Coelho It was lovely to see you today. I haven’t seen you in such a long time. So much has happened since the last time we saw each other. You asked me how I was. I politely replied, “I’m fine” and forced a smile that I […]
“The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.” ~Deepak Chopra I used to handle hurtful situations in relationships the same way. I’d get angry, shut down, get irritated, or just give my partner the silent treatment. This just led to more of what I didn’t want—separation, loneliness, and frustration. So […]
“Resilience is all about being able to overcome the unexpected. Sustainability is about survival. The goal of resilience is to thrive.” ~Jamais Cascio The pandemic has forced us to avoid people, self-isolate, and keep to ourselves. It might seem like you’re in a position where you don’t have many options. You can’t freely hang out […]
“Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.” ~David W. Augsburger The five love languages—a framework for how we give and receive affection created by psychologist Gary Chapman in 1992—include quality time, gifts, acts of service, words of affirmation, and physical touch. As much as I […]
“What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.” ~Kurt Vonnegut Have you ever felt like a stranger in your own life? Watching other people like you were separated by some invisible […]
“Make the most of yourself… for that is all there is of you.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson Every day, it was more or less the same. I presented an edited version of myself to the world. I felt a deep level of discomfort with the idea of letting myself go. Could I? Should I? The answer […]
“We cultivate love when we allow our most vulnerable and powerful selves to be deeply seen and known, and when we honor the spiritual connection that grows from that offering with trust, respect, kindness and affection.” ~Brené Brown January – 2012 I remember sitting in a small, dark room waiting for the surgeon to arrive. […]
“To change your life, you need to change your priorities.” ~Mark Twain Every year, come December, I used to obsess about air pollution. This was the time when my husband and I would take our young daughter to Poland, the country of my birth, to spend Christmas with the extended family. There my anxieties would […]
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” ~Mahatma Gandhi I’d like to bring it one step further and say, “Happiness is when what you feel, what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” Some people may argue that there is no […]
If I were given the chance to relive my childhood, I wouldn’t take it. For the most part, those were times I’d rather forget. I didn’t get along well in school, and family life was less than ideal. About the only thing I liked about the seventies and eighties was the rock ‘n’ roll music. […]
