Hello Sunday Readers, Today is a rare day off where I don’t have to leave my apartment or do anything. I have things to get done around my place, but I can stay in my pajamas and take my time with my To-do list, and have the kitty in my lap a good part of […]
anxiety
Camp Widow Serendipity in 2025
… two stories, one in process. … a story from 2023. Two widows, two rocks, two husbands—integrity twice remembered. It was September of 2022 in Denver at the local community college. A widow, finding no […]
Progress Not Perfection
In Life and In Widow-Dog Training PART three Last night, I took this picture of Indy as she watched over her territory. This morning, she moved into action mode over the dangerous action of me looking out the window! A light yellow flash of 70 pounds of athletic animal leaping through the doggie door; […]
Watching and Waiting
The Raccoon Saga Continues I think they’re gone. As I examine the clues of how they arrived, it seems they are gone. The urgency I felt (fear?) and signs of their presence brought a low level panic in my psyche. Why? Because I love animals and even though I know their presence could be […]
The Dance of Life in the Garden
. . . and sometimes, under the house. It is in the garden that life and death arrive on the regular. I witness living and dying primarily in the plants, grasses and weeds that come and go. I’m ever aware that when I pay attention, the garden is a valuable teacher. As a small […]
The Many Masks of Grief
. . . my story What am I feeling? Bad. I feel bad. Am I experiencing this feeling from a lack of sleep? Have I eaten? I’m feeling depressed. Is this feeling related to another step in my grief? Another reality check? (I check the calendar…is this an anniversary my body is remembering?) […]
An Eye Opener:
Worldwide Widowed Communities What took me to stories about widowed folk around the world? Just returned from a mini-vacay where I had no responsibilities other than showing up for the fun. Arriving home to my regular routine, settling into the normal challenges of my post-Dan-life, I found myself wondering about the lives of […]
Facing Ambush
Part of the Work of Grief Sometimes your feelings are right. You need to take a chill pill, slow down, hang out with friends, and cry your heart out. Other times, they need to be corrected. What you need to do then is examine your emotions, separate false from truth, make a plan for refreshing, […]
Facing Fear
A Conversation I see you, fear. I see you once again and say ‘hey’ formidable crafty opposer. Mess-making friend who turns the neatly arranged inner furniture up-side-down and brings all manner of havoc to me— unbidden. You arrive at my door in many costumes; posing beneath a plethora of masks and feelings; […]
Sleep Remedy
Up at night? What to do? Stare at the ceiling? Worry? Go online? Or try something new . . . A stream of consciousness writing exercise called Writing Practice. Created by a writing teacher for those who love to write but don’t know what to write about. Here’s how it works […]
Healing Support Tools: The Labyrinth
Labyrinths represent a journey or path to our own center and back again. The labyrinth serves as a metaphor for life’s journey. —Healing Consciousness Foundation What is a labyrinth? There are many definitions for the word “labyrinth”. One simple way to explain it is “a series of circuitous paths that lead to the center and […]
Here Comes Everybody
When my children were little, our youngest son always seemed to make a friend wherever he went. The library, in the aisles of the grocery store, or even while waiting for a prescription at the pharmacy. He was wired for seeing children in his world as “little-while friends.” When I attended Camp Widow, not long […]