Spiritual deadheading

Even though it's the middle of winter, my mind drifted to gardening today.  Specifically I found myself thinking about deadheading flowers.  Go figure.  Perhaps it's the approaching New Year that has been contemplating what I need to leave behind as I enter into the New Year.   Whatever the reason, I just posted an article on the parallels...

An open letter to boomers

I wish I'd written this post, but I didn't.  I found it today on LinkedIn, posted by David on the Aspiring Writers Group board.  He says he didn't write it either, but he doesn't think that the original author would mind if others shared it.  I tend to agree, so here it is, reposted in its entirety as I found it. WE ARE AWESOME !!!No matter what...

Giving great gifts doesn't have to break the bank

Today I started a series of articles for Suite101.com on gift ideas in time for the holiday shopping season.  If you're looking for creative, unusual and inexpensive give ideas, check out Inexpensive Gift Basket Ideas Using Dollar Store Items, 6 Easy and Inexpensive DIY Gardening Gift Ideas, and Inexpensive Gift Ideas for All Types of...

Revelations from the road

My recent road trip held even more revelations than I'd anticipated in my previous post.  I started my journey with my GPS, but also with printed directions from MapQuest.  Even though I knew the GPS would get me there turn by turn, the ability to see the "big picture" was an extra measure of security for me. As it turned out, my parents were on a...

A real life road trip

I had an interesting revelation while preparing for my upcoming Thanksgiving holiday road trip.  Even though I have a GPS in my car, I still found myself printing door-to-door directions from Google Maps.  I realized that even though I would have step-by-step directions right there in the car, I still needed the additional comfort of a printed set...

Lessons I learned from cataract surgery

Today I was reflecting on the need to see things from God's perspective rather than our own.  When things aren't going as we'd planned or hoped, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that we can only see a very limited piece of the bigger picture.  I was reminded of how I learned this lesson in a vivid way last year when I had cataract surgery. That...

A season of silence

There are times in my life when God is on a roll - the blessings come faster than I can count them.  Now is not one of those times.  I've been struggling through a season of silence for a couple of months now and I haven't been handling it as gracefully as I'd like.   Thankfully, while God may not be speaking to me in ways that I can readily understand,...

The importance of sharing

People who know me well, and perhaps some who don't, know that I often share the painful experiences of my past.  My ex-husband was a very private person, and he hated this quality about me.  I could never get him to understand that there is no value in keeping lessons learned to ourselves. I believe it is a moral obligation, a calling, to try...

Praying inside the box

Many people believe that we should ask God for what we want, leave our prayers with Him, and move on, knowing that He will answer our prayers in His time and in His way.  In theory that makes perfect sense.  I wish I was disciplined enough to do it.  I've gotten better about not repeating the same prayer over...

Unexpected blessings

This morning as I sat on my front steps browsing through the Sunday paper, I found myself crying while reading an article about Bucket Lists.  It was supposed to be an upbeat article about all the really cool things that people had on their lists and the joy of crossing things off one by one...

Tell the new story

Gregg Levoy writes that psychologist Jean Houston stresses that "In order to discover what is trying to be born in you from your wound, what gift or call might be pressing for delivery... you need to stop reciting the small story about it - the particulars, the details - and tell the larger story. Tell the tale anew this time with the wounding...

An open letter to my exes

I've been hurt. A lot. But over time I've come to understand that no situation, and no relationship, is without purpose. People are brought into our lives to teach us things, and for us to teach them things, and although they’re sometimes quite painful, these lessons are a necessary part of growing....

Man Up: 7 tips for ending a relationship the right way

Breaking up is painful, but many times the way the breakup is handled is more painful the end to the relationship itself.  Thankfully I'm not going through a breakup right now, but I felt called to write this piece anyway.  Surely someone somewhere may find it helpful. ...

Do your shoes fit?

According to author Barbara Sher, "the reason most of us haven't been able to run after our dreams is that we were wearing the wrong size shoes. All we have to do is discover what fits us, and chances are we'll do just fine!" The more I think about this, the more true I find it to be - on so many levels. For years, my "work shoes" were too big. And perhaps...

Lazy, lovely Sunday afternoon

Today I had lunch with a wonderful new friend and sister-in-Christ, Carol.  We met through LinkedIn.  Yes, real-life connections can and do happen there. We spent the afternoon getting to know each other.  We shared our stories and our dreams.  We marveled at all the things we're discovering that we have in common, and we've already started...

Defining family

Yesterday I saw Eat Pray Love and I was moved beyond words. I know the movie didn't get rave reviews, and I hadn't read the best-selling book, but I do like Julia Roberts and I've always been fascinating by tales of exploration and transformation, so I went to see it and I absolutely loved it...

Is your call still waiting?

"Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” I don't know where that quote originated, but I saw it posted on FaceBook recently. It's so true... and so applicable to my life . I've been procrastinating for years on committing fully to what I believe my calling to be. I convinced myself that I had great reasons for holding...

My personal GPS

During my years conducting market research feasibility studes for commercial real estate development projects, I spent countless hours driving around unfamiliar cities, balancing watching the road, looking for street signs, and trying to decipher a road map - all at the same time. How much easier it would have been to simply start the car, type in the address...

Take control by letting go of it

One of the biggest examples of the disservice done by modern-day "self help" movements is the fallacy that we can (and should) control every aspect of our lives. Please don't misunderstand, I am a major advocate of personal responsibility and accountability, but the key word is "personal".  One of the most basic life lessons is also one of the hardest to...

Thoughts on turning 50

I know there are women who dread the mere thought of turning 50, but I'm not one of them. In fact, I turned 50 not too long ago and all things, considered, I've never been happier. For me, 50 really is the new 40 (maybe even 35) and I'm embracing the beginning of my "second half" with a spirit of gratitude, celebration and anticipation...

Defying the Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater

A few years ago I "broke up" with the man I'd been dating. To be honest, to say that we "broke up" is not quite accurate. Technically, he dumped me. But that's not the point of this story. He knew that I loved to knit and to my surprise, just a few weeks before he vanished, he mentioned the possibility of me knitting an...