I hung up the phone feeling both anger and fear. My friend had just said some things to me that I did not want to hear. We had a bit of a fight. Then a few days later I met my mom for lunch. After we ordered our food she took out a piece of paper and said she had something she wanted me to hear. I knew it was serious because she writes things down when she wants her thoughts to come out right. And don't you know, she basically said the same thing to me as my friend had said. I wasn't nearly as ...

You only live once. Really? This is a common euphemism but is it true? I have been a baby, a toddler, a child and an adolescent, a BFF, a girlfriend, a young woman, a lover, a wife, a mom, a middle-aged woman, a grandmother, and soon-to-be a senior. Upon digging a little deeper, I have been a choir girl, a girl scout, a student, a stoner, a waitress, a hippie, a traveler, a heavy drinker, a freak, a wise-ass, a recovering addict, a storyteller, a corporate girl, a learner, an actor, a graduate, ...

Changing your identity? It sometimes happens overnight. For example: One day you're pregnant, the next day you're a mom or a dad. One day you're a worker bee, and the next day promoted to supervisor. One day you're single, the next day you're married (or vice versa). One day you have a parent, and then they're gone and you're an orphan. One day you're working and then the next day, retired. These changes in identity can happen overnight, in the blink of an eye. But we know in reality there is ...

Challenges were coming at me from every direction. They say if one or more situations in your life are changing then you are in a transition. Let's count how many things changed for me that year. The year was 2013 and here are some of the things that happened, not in any particular order: I was leaving my corporate career after 27 years resulting in a large reduction in income I was starting a business called Spirit Drops and I was becoming a coach I had major surgery because of an ...

I was called on stage to receive an award for the best speech in my region from the Distributed Education Clubs of America (DECA) conference in Cherry Hill, NJ. I was 17, at my first conference ever, with a DECA Business teacher and a few other seniors in High School. I was so nervous to be on stage as me, not a character in a school play. I had to "act" confident because I wasn't feeling it. And I wasn't even speaking! I was just accepting an award. The speech that I delivered where I won the ...

I walked into the retreat with excitement and trepidation. I knew it was going to be good yet I was half filled with dread. They wanted me to surrender my phone, books, writing, and my voice. It was a silent retreat with no tools for escape. I had never been without my phone for six days. I had never been silent for more than a few hours. Not even a full day. Ever. And I discovered something wonderful. Not only was I just fine and okay, I could actually sit, stand, and walk in meditation for ...

It starts with being brave. Yesterday I took Nightingale (my 6-year-old granddaughter) to the dentist. She needed to have a filling put in. She was a bit concerned about it but she was feeling brave. She trusted it wasn't going to hurt and that it was important. When was the last time you had to muster up some courage? Maybe this morning or yesterday? I say that with all seriousness because there are so many triggers in our daily life that can bring up fear and anxiety. Here's a short list of ...

I walked into the American Legion hall and didn't see many people there. They wanted $5 to get into the AA dance but I was reluctant to pay. I said, "Just give me 5 minutes, please. I want to check and see if my friend is here." They let me in. But the thing is, I didn't really have any friends here yet. I had just moved back to CT two months before and although I had been going to AA meetings in Windsor, I was in Manchester that night, so I was pretty sure I wasn't going to know anyone. My ...

When I was a leader on project teams at work, we would do our best to celebrate milestones. Many times I would write a rhyming poem that made the group laugh. Some people are good at celebrating and others not so much. I have become good at it over the years because I practice. In our culture in the States, we tend to celebrate big events like births, birthdays, graduations, promotions, weddings, retirement, and even deaths (depending on the family's culture). I think we are getting better at ...

Last year at this time I was feeling unsettled, and anxious about the future, and I was at a crossroads in my business. An opportunity arose for me to go on a silent retreat at the end of February (2023) and I jumped at the chance. Before I left on my retreat I had anxiety about a lot of things and now being silent was thrown into the mix! You see, I'm a talker. And that voice in my head can get pretty loud sometimes so when that happens, I really like to talk it out with someone. But ...