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CAREGIVING | HUMAN TRAFFICKING | FOOD | SPIRITUAL | BUILDING COMMUNITY
Topic ~ Caregiving
Grampa Stiles and His Stately Grandfather Clock
This year, I aim to be happy and know peace inside and out. For each of us, peace may mean something different. And for sure, we each get there on our terms. Maintaining a peaceful balance amid change, which we are all experiencing, is essential to our well-being. To...
What’s It Like Living with a Chronic Illness?
"Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow." (Mary Anne Radmacher) Pain, fatigue, and feeling alone with your chronic illness can make self-pity and crying an effortless option. From the beginning of my...
A Wellness Journey Begins
In the beginning. Eight years ago, following emergency surgery and an extended stay in the hospital, I couldn't eat any food without extreme bloating and pain, requiring a potent pain reliever. I spent months on bone broth and didn't have the energy to walk beyond my...
Topic ~ Human Trafficking
Together We Are an Anti-Human Trafficking Special Task Force
"What we do as individuals is important. What we do as individuals collectively is even more important." Together we are a Special Task Force. I feel it's a privilege to have a space in which to write about human trafficking to create awareness through education. I've...
8 Tips for Parents to Help End Human Trafficking
This week, my focus continues on the issue of sex trafficking and what parents can do to help prevent their children from becoming victims. Why now? As I pointed out two weeks ago, one reason is the significantly rising number of people trafficked worldwide. Two other...
What is Labor Trafficking? It is Always About People
Most of us wonder about the rate at which summer proceeds. I have yet to hear a believable explanation for the speedy passing of summer. And here we are two weeks into September! What has happened to Labor Day, school starting, and the first smells of autumn? They...
Topic ~ Food
Do You Love the Scents of November?
If you notice and love the scents of November, then this week’s post is for you. If you enjoy the idea of slowing down and enjoying the process of fall sliding into winter, then this week’s post is for you. October is grand with its colors and pumpkin spice everything...
Colorful Sweet and Spicy Pepper Relish
This last week has been a lesson in learning to go with the flow and remember to allow what needs to happen, happen. Everything has its timing. The week started OK. The tomatoes I tried to grow this summer were a bust. They got a blight that took out most of them. So...
This Top Rated Meatloaf is Sure to Please!
Every once in a while, someone will reach out to me via social media, email, or stop me somewhere and tell me they enjoy reading my column and blog posts. I look forward to them every week. I also enjoy reading comments in the comment section of my blog so let me know...
Topic ~ Spiritual
Have You Lost Your Muchness?
"You're not the same as you were before. You were much more...muchier. You've lost your muchness." (Lewis Carroll - Alice in Wonderland) My take on this quote is that Mad Hatter refers to Alice losing connection to her inner child. She has forgotten how to play and be...
It’s Easy to Shift Focus to the Next Tragedy
Greetings, dear readers. I baked today and will bake tomorrow, too. I bake when I need to think. Today, I thought about all kinds of things while I baked three batches of shortbread, a carrot cake, which will be tomorrow's birthday cake with cream cheese frosting and...
Believing and Affirming — It’s not magic, but it feels magical
Happy New Year! I spent the week of New Year's Day with the flu—three days of fever and more than that of coughing. The coughing thing is still happening. The number of times I succumb to coughing in a day is lessening. I know it will eventually go away. My energy is...
It’s 11:58 – Are You Awake?
The calendar that most people follow for business purposes and daily living proclaimed January 1, 2025, the beginning of a new year. This is not true of all belief systems, but it is relevant and valuable in my thoughts today. In the long run, the particular day of a...
Topic ~ Building Community
Have You Lost Your Muchness?
"You're not the same as you were before. You were much more...muchier. You've lost your muchness." (Lewis Carroll - Alice in Wonderland) My take on this quote is that Mad Hatter refers to Alice losing connection to her inner child. She has forgotten how to play and be...
It’s Easy to Shift Focus to the Next Tragedy
Greetings, dear readers. I baked today and will bake tomorrow, too. I bake when I need to think. Today, I thought about all kinds of things while I baked three batches of shortbread, a carrot cake, which will be tomorrow's birthday cake with cream cheese frosting and...
Believing and Affirming — It’s not magic, but it feels magical
Happy New Year! I spent the week of New Year's Day with the flu—three days of fever and more than that of coughing. The coughing thing is still happening. The number of times I succumb to coughing in a day is lessening. I know it will eventually go away. My energy is...
It’s 11:58 – Are You Awake?
The calendar that most people follow for business purposes and daily living proclaimed January 1, 2025, the beginning of a new year. This is not true of all belief systems, but it is relevant and valuable in my thoughts today. In the long run, the particular day of a...