Do you ever ask yourself questions like like “Does my life have meaning?” or “Will I leave anything of value behind when I die?” or “Are the contributions I make at work or in my personal life worth anything?” I certainly do, and I know that many of my clients do too. In a recent article, Parker Palmer suggests that asking such questions is a “road to nowhere.“ His article, “The Big Question: Does My Life Have Meaning?” provides a
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If we are brave enough, often enough, we will fail. This is a book about what it takes to get back up. (Dr. Brene Brown, from the cover of Rising Strong) She’s back! Last week Dr. Brene Brown, TED talk sensation and author of two New York Times bestsellers released her much anticipated new book, Rising Strong. I read Rising Strong in one sitting this past weekend (just couldn’t stop!), and am excited to recommend it to anyone who is struggling to re-group
Read more →How well are you paying attention to the people you love? Do these people really know they matter to you? Using John Lennon’s analogy, are you doing enough to “water” the relationships that are important to you? When, for whatever reason, we lose our willingness to invest the time, energy and emotion it takes to keep an important relationship alive and thriving, we can bring great heartache to family members and friends we love, or with whom we have had a deep connection. In the midst of our own busy
Read more →It’s important to pay attention to the moments we feel moved to tears. These moments are opportunities to learn something new about ourselves and our place in this world. They often hold clues to who we really are, and what we should do next. Frederick Buechner, one of my favorite authors, says that listening to our lives (including our tears) is the best and most authentic way to experience ourselves and God. He talks about tears in his book, Beyond Words: YOU NEVER KNOW what may cause them. The
Read more →Our stories matter. The stories we tell ourselves can have a huge impact on our mental well-being. Whether we realize it or not, we all create stories, or “narratives” to process information and make sense of events that happen in our lives. The way we construct our stories can radically influence our lives and the lives of our family and friends. “We have very little control over what happens in our lives, but we have alot of control over how we integrate and remember what
Read more →Wholehearted living is about engaging in our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think, No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough. It’s going to bed at night thinking, Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging. (Brene Brown,
Read more →We always have the choice to be one who affirms or one who drains. When you think of the various relationships and activities in your life, are you being one who affirms or one who drains? We affirm when our thoughts, words, actions and even non-actions “breathe life” and help others to become alive in new ways. We drain when our thoughts, words, actions and non-actions hurt and dishearten others. In every encounter we either give life or drain it.
Read more →On this 25th day of December 2014, I would like to share a Christmas song with you. This song isn’t typically considered a Christmas song, but I think it speaks to the true meaning of this special day in a powerful way. It points us to a way of living that Jesus, whose birth we celebrate today, so perfectly embodied. This song, The Prayer of St. Francis, also known as Make Me An Instrument of Your Peace is actually a prayer. It has been my daily
Read more →Sometimes quick stress relief is exactly what we need. Have you ever found yourself in a pressure-filled situation (disagreement with your spouse, chaotic work meeting, unexpected traffic jam) and suddenly -your pulse is racing, -your heart is thumping, -your blood pressure is rising, -your face is flushing, -your muscles are tensing, -your sweat glands are working overtime, -you feel like you are physically going to explode? If you can identify with this scenario, you have experienced the unpleasant sensation of
Read more →How well are you taking care of yourself? On a scale of 0-10, where do you rate yourself? If your score indicates room for growing your self care plan, are you interested in stepping up to the plate? If so, I’ve got a Challenge for you! I recently came across a long list of self care ideas at a free workshop, “Caring for the Caregiver” provided by The Regional Child Protection Center at Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines. The purpose of this workshop was to impact
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