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How to comfort a grieving friend
“If you’re my age, you’ve probably had your heart broken many times. So it’s not that difficult to unpack a bit of grief from some little corner of your heart and cry over it.” ~Emma Thompson Losing our parents and other loved ones is a reality of life as we age — a reality that’s easier to face if we have a nurturing support system. But sometimes it’s hard to know how to help and comfort friends who are grieving a new loss. That’s the topic of my newest column in The Sunday Oakland Press. You’ll find it in the Homefront section in the print edition (July 2) or you…
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Moving in another direction
“Taking a step back to walk away from situations that threaten your peace of mind, values, morals, or self-worth, is almost always a healthy and necessary step forward.” ~Marc and Angel Chernoff Growing up, we were often lectured about the importance of “sticking with it” — even when we suspected it wasn’t right for us. Of course, there’s merit in staying the course and working through difficult times and rough patches, but sometimes it’s better to slow down and reassess what’s really going on, as today’s quote reminds us. We might decide that it’s wiser moving on to something else. Loyalty to anyone or anything isn’t a virtue if it’s seriously messing…
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Opinionated people
“Never confuse being opinionated with having something to say.” ~Marty Rubin Today’s quote says it all, and I’m not going to spoil it with my own commentary. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! ~CL
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Rescue mission
“I read and walked for miles at night along the beach, searching endlessly for someone wonderful who would step out of the darkness and change my life. It never crossed my mind that that person could be me.” ~Anna Quindlen Who hasn’t wished to be “rescued” at one time or another? Who hasn’t felt like a victim of circumstance? It’s always tempting (and probably instinctive) to blame outside forces when things go wrong. When life doesn’t turn out the way we’d hoped or planned, we can point a finger at our scary parents, family history, the economy, bad weather, construction traffic, the government, unforeseen events, or even lousy genes. …
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Getting quiet
“There’s a deep, sweet, peaceful sense that comes when wordlessness moves in and the verbal mind drops away.” ~Martha Beck Yesterday I started my routine at sunrise with a mug of coffee, then worked on Monday’s Life Lines post. As soon as I shared that post with all of you, I spent the next few hours finishing a newspaper column before sending it off to the editor. In the evening, my husband and I met another couple for a birthday dinner and chatted for two hours before heading home. That’s a lot of words in one day. After I post this, I plan to savor a quiet morning — a…
