This past week, I was up at our cottage in northern Michigan, and I joined the family at nearby Ocqueoc Falls. Rick used to make fun of the falls. When I first took him there, he kept laughing as he ...
Sometimes I see life as a series of mountains and valleys. I have just come back from another hike. I have done several overnight, back country, backpacking trips but this one was another special one. It was extra hard with ...
How many times have you heard: “You are so strong!”? Or seen memes that compliment a widow’s strength, like this one: “You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have”? I didn’t realize ...
“You’re an empty nester now. How do you like living alone?” I’ve been asked this frequently since my youngest daughter moved out last month. Honestly? I don’t always like it. Some days, I absolutely hate it. The word “nest” reminds ...
If you’ve ever given up sweets for a while, you know how satisfying three M & M’s or a single Hershey’s Kiss can be. Or maybe you’ve stopped drinking pop, and when you finally try one again, a few swallows ...
People have said all sorts of things to me in the last two years in efforts to offer comfort. Some have been confusing or inadvertently hurtful, and others held nuggets of truth that have come to make more sense with ...
August 13th, 2019 will mark twelve years since my husband, Ali, passed away. It's still hard to believe it's been more than a decade since he left this planet. I still remember details of the day he closed his ...
I lost one pound this week. My winter diet of donuts and wine was not working out after all. It was fun while it lasted, but it’s time for me to take back control. I’ve had enough to hurt about, ...
Sometimes You’ve Gotta Fake Joy To Get To The Real Thing This was me 4 years ago, faking joy, 420 feet above the Skokomish River on the High Steel Bridge in my home state of Washington. This truss arch ...