Writing is something that has always brought me joy. Taking pen to paper or tapping out words on a keyboard are tools I have used to process the experiences in my life. The good. The bad. The ugly. For the past several months, I have chosen to keep the thoughts in my head. Rarely haveContinue reading “From Martyrdom to Mindfulness: Embrace Gratitude”
Tag Archives: #grief
Fallout After Loss
My Dad passed away when I was a junior in high school. While I was only sixteen, I had the maturity to understand a little about grief and processing emotions. I never thought this shouldn’t have happened, and I did not argue with the reality of the situation. I accepted that life is unpredictable, weContinue reading “Fallout After Loss”
Intellectual Disability and the Dreaded Question: Is She in Pain?
Fear. Panic. Helplessness. Those are the feelings that swept over me as I lifted my daughter up from the toilet seat. There’s so much blood. I cleaned her up and washed my hands. I grabbed my cell phone, took a photo of the bowl (really), and sent it to Todd. He helped calm and groundContinue reading “Intellectual Disability and the Dreaded Question: Is She in Pain?”
Pearl Sized Loss
It’s just a damn goldfish. Pull yourself together. I go to the cupboard and retrieve the net. Tears are streaming down my face, and I muffle my cries. Guacamole is lying at the bottom of the tank. I scoop his lifeless body from the bottom of the tank and take him to the compost bin. “GoContinue reading “Pearl Sized Loss”
Not the Sanctuary of My Dreams
Why isn’t the joy bubble refilling faster? I thought we were writing something whimsical and fun this week? What is wrong with you? Snap out of it. (The A side of my chatter) Give yourself a break. November is already a weird month for you. You often get the blues around this time of theContinue reading “Not the Sanctuary of My Dreams”
Whimsy to Woeful
It’s quickly approaching 1 am. I am sitting on the floor in the living room, surrounded by a sea of towels. A stack of clean. A stack of dirty and a stack of—I am not even sure at this point. Emily is leaning her head on my chest, and we are covered in a bigContinue reading “Whimsy to Woeful”
Thankful for the Memories
Our memories are not confined to square footage. They are not limited to a physical boundary. Infinite storage capacity is included with our brain’s processor. Rarely do we have to delete files to make room for additional ones. Isn’t that a beautiful thing? We don’t have to decide which ones we are going to saveContinue reading “Thankful for the Memories”
Grief Within the Beauty
Grief is a part of this journey. You can be grateful for the child you are blessed with and grieve things that will never be. There is beauty beyond the grief and grief within the beauty.
Celebration Minus Expectation
I threw away the manual on milestones and expectations for Emily’s progress and achievements. I started to practice acceptance and release control.
The Gift of Acceptance
This past Sunday was Mother’s Day. In my experience, holidays often come with unexpected or unwanted emotions. Grief and sadness are the two that show up on the regular. Holidays tend to highlight or magnify the loss I have experienced. They are a reminder that my parents are gone and not here to celebrate. TheyContinue reading “The Gift of Acceptance”
Conversation for Change 