Year 10: Something Like Peace…

I am tired. Like, dragging myself around tired. A deep tired, down to my bones tired. Muscle ache tired. Wearing weights chained to my ankles and wrists tired. And then I remember…this is the week. It’s been ten years and my body still knows before I do. It still takes my brain a few daysContinueContinue reading “Year 10: Something Like Peace…”

My “Dry” January 2023

Typically, Dry January refers to a month of abstention from alcohol (and maybe whatever else was overabundant in the pre-new year holiday season). After an emotionally exhausting and panic-attack-filled 2022, I decided to do my own grief version of a “Dry January” in 2023. 2022 was awful, and I wanted to begin a practice ofContinueContinue reading “My “Dry” January 2023″

Monday Meditation: Quiet Matters

“When you quiet your mind, you can enter a world of clarity, peace and understanding.” -Alice Coltrane Quiet is more than just the absence of noise. Quiet is a state of being that helps suppress distracting intrusions so that the right sounds can become loud and clear. For grievers, quiet is a golden elephant thatContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Quiet Matters”

Monday Meditation: Sorting the Mess

“Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better.”-Marilyn Ferguson If you’ve ever moved, you know how stressful it is to be surrounded by a mess that you have to put away. But, before you can put anything away, you have to figure out where everything is going to go, and to do that,ContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Sorting the Mess”

Monday Meditation: A Deep Breath

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart. I am. I am. I am.” -Sylvia Plath In grief, especially in the early days, a chaotic whirlwind swoops in and creates emotional confusion and mental anguish. Though it fades over (a lot of) time, this whirlwind can return without warning,ContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: A Deep Breath”

Monday Meditation: Rise Up.

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.-Confucius Grief is far from a smooth path. Just when we think we have mastered some emotion or aspect of grief, something comes along and knocks us off kilter. Maybe we react badly, maybe we feel like we failed. Grief isContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Rise Up.”

Monday Meditation: Chose Peace of Mind

For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind. -Ralph Waldo Emerson Grief can bring all sorts of anger: at friends and family, at yourself, at your lost loved one, at no one in particular. While anger is part of the grief process, anger can also become an obstacleContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Chose Peace of Mind”

Monday Meditation: Sharing Brings Healing

Part of the healing process is sharing with other people who care. -Jerry Cantrell There is a preconception that people should keep their suffering to themselves. Sad or unhappy conversations should not take place. We can only publically project strength, happiness, and confidence. This is nonsense. Healing requires sharing our pain with others, and inContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Sharing Brings Healing”

Monday Meditation: Kindness Heals

The words of kindness are more healing to a drooping heart than balm or honey. -Sarah Fielding “I am sorry you have to go through this.” “I love you.” “I am here to listen.” “You are so courageous.” Kindness goes a long way in the grief process. For Grief Supporters, kindness can mean the differenceContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Kindness Heals”

Monday Meditation: Move through Struggle

Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle. -Napoleon Hill Grief is a constant struggle with emotions, life circumstances, unhelpful Grief Supporters, difficult family members, and missing the loved one. The effort required to slog your way through this period is enormous. Along the way, you will uncover strength you were unaware ofContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Move through Struggle”

Mother’s Day 2018

Mother’s Day is this weekend. I keep forgetting about it. Not having a mother will do that to you. My email is full of helpful “reminders” of the day from internet companies I have bought gifts through over the past year.  Even before my mother died I always wondered about people who had terrible relationshipsContinueContinue reading “Mother’s Day 2018”

Monday Meditation: Forgive for the Future

When you forgive, you in no way change the past—but you sure do change the future. -Bernard Meltzer The grief period is fraught with tension, Grief Supporters behave badly, Grievers hold anger, very few people understand what Grievers are dealing with in their daily lives, etc. To come out of this experience as a strongerContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: Forgive for the Future”

Monday Meditation: The Sound of Silence

  Silence is the source of great strength. -Lao Tzu   Step away from the moments in which there are too many voices telling you what to do, how to feel, what to decide, and how to act. Take time to sit in silence every day so that you can meet these demands with aContinueContinue reading “Monday Meditation: The Sound of Silence”

Meditation Monday: Keep Moving to Stay Balanced

Get on the bike and keep pedaling.

Meditation Monday: Let Anger Go

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger. -The Buddha Let go of anger you have at your situation or at people in your life. Anger affects the person who feels it, not the person against who anger is felt. Don’t waste your energy letting negative emotions ruleContinueContinue reading “Meditation Monday: Let Anger Go”