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Pain management
“Don’t allow your wounds to transform you into something you are not.” ~Paulo Coehlo Years ago, I knew a person who defined herself by all the sad things that had happened to her. Every day was a pity party. Or, as another friend described her, she “wore bad luck like a badge of honor.” And even though this person had many advantages, she used pain as an excuse to stop reaching for a better, happier life. She allowed her wounds to transform her, to borrow from today’s quote. Nobody travels through this life without getting hurt, losing people they love, and suffering trauma. Some people grow from painful experiences, while…
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Funny Friday ~ “Astrology”
“I don’t believe in astrology. I am a Sagittarius and we’re very skeptical.” ~Arthur C. Clarke
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Seek the life force
“There is a force within that gives you life. Seek that. Ignore those who make you fearful and sad.” ~Rumi In the early days of the pandemic, there wasn’t much to do besides hang out at home and follow all the bad news on TV or online. More than ever, the country was steeped in viral fear, coronavirus body counts, political turmoil, and partisan anger. It took a huge toll on everyone, impacting our collective mental health as well as our personal relationships. Every crisis survivor will tell you that you can’t walk the road to recovery without believing that something better is entirely possible. A stubborn, negative attitude will only get you…
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Big cheers for “Barbie”
“Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices.” ~Ruth Handler, creator of the Barbie doll Like many girls in the 1960s, I owned Mattel’s Barbie and Ken dolls and their vast miniature empire of accessories. The dolls inspired countless hours of creative play — and I’d even go so far as to say that Barbie influenced my writing career as well as my lifelong passion for shoes and clothing. Unlike other dolls of my era, Barbie had options beyond housekeeping and motherhood. The sky was the limit for Barbie. Don’t forget that Mattel launched Astronaut Barbie in 1965 — years before there was a real female in NASA’s…
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Be kind to yourself
“I dreamed I called you on the telephone to say: Be kinder to yourself.” ~Adrienne Rich, poet and essayist In her hit song, “Harshest Critic,” Allison Ponthier asks: “Why is ‘being good to myself’ for someone else?” and “Who’s the harshest critic in the room?” I think we all know the answer. Most of us are incredibly hard on ourselves. On one hand, constructive self-criticism can be helpful at times (though a true narcissist would disagree). Most of us learn from our mistakes or oversights when we’re willing to admit them and repair the damages. We can grow from the soil of what went wrong. But if we get stuck…
