This post originally ran on July 2, 2022 and is reprinted here in honor of Thanksgiving Week I’ve been reading a book called Real: The Inside-Out Guide to Being Yourself by Clare Diamond. In Part One, Diamond deconstructs “self” by telling us all the things we are not. We are not our thoughts, emotions, beliefs,...
Some would say I’m too old to be watching Disney movies, but a while back I was flipping channels and landed on Frozen 2 at the part just before Anna sings the song, “The Next Right Thing.” It’s a pretty heavy song for a children’s movie. Anna is expressing deep depression and grief brought on...
I have a friend who is one of those rare people who can speak her mind without causing offense. Who can walk into a room full of friends as her authentic self, true to whatever mood she’s in, and be accepted. Whose hugs feel sincere, and whose wisdom you seek. She can call me on...
I’ve been under some stress lately, which has inhibited my creative thinking. It’s hard to focus on building something new when you’re more focused on keeping your head above water. But is that even true, or just a convenient excuse? Many artists throughout the centuries have produced amazing works of art while living through circumstances...
My husband is closing out a 33-year career in corporate America. He’s not retiring, he’s moving into a new line of creative work of his choosing. Still, it feels like a huge change. He’s been at the same company his entire career and started there when we were still dating. That company has been our...
I was gushing on about the Enneagram and feng shui the other day to a friend. I’ve spent a great deal of time in the past two to three years learning about both and applying the knowledge and practice of each to my life in some pretty uplifting ways. “It’s funny,” my friend said. “I...
Since I was young, the F-word has been what I called my “reserve word.” If you heard me say it you knew one of two things: I was either royally pissed or I’d had too much to drink, and either way, you should probably take me home. In the past few years of living in...
A couple of years ago, I was listening to a talk or podcast in which the speaker said something about not feeling the need to convince anyone of anything. The concept got me thinking and led to my new motto, “It’s not my job to convince you.” To me, this means there are people who...
I’ve been thinking lately about all the messages I received as a child, all the things society wanted us to believe that never felt totally right to me, yet I accepted them. Why? For example, when I was a kid, my mom loved the Doris Day song, “Que Sera Sera.” In the lyrics, the young...
A friend commented on one of my recent blog posts. She said, “I just love how honest you are in your blog.” I took that as a compliment, after all, that’s how she intended it. But her comment caused me pause. See, when I write these posts, I don’t set out to be anything in...