What follows is a quote from When Mourning Comes by William B. Silverman and Kenneth M. Cinnamon. The Scratch on the Diamond "A king once owned a large, beautiful, pure diamond of which he was justly proud, for it had no equal anywhere. One day, the diamond accidentally sustained a deep scratch. The king called … Continue reading from an introduction →

Today, I began to make changes in my bedroom. Actually, it started two weeks ago, when I asked my friend, Carrie, who was going to be staying at my home while I traveled, to help move the old dresser from my bedroom to the guest room. She said she would do it while I was … Continue reading Time and healing →

This is my first entry since I made my blog private. I found that, most of the past two months, I have either been depressed and sad or choosing to withdraw from people due to feeling too exposed. I am by nature an introvert. It takes energy for me to interact with others, and, although … Continue reading Difficult people interactions →

This blog was to be a sort of diary...a way to think things through. I have, at times,  throughout my life written a journal as a way of externalizing internal thoughts as I worked through emotions going on within. I was excited about doing so in the digital world...and did not really care if others … Continue reading Changing status →

Wow! It has been more than two weeks since I last posted a blog. It is not that I have decided to stop blogging so much as being in survival mode and withdrawing from the world. Now it is time to come out of my shell and do some reflecting. New Year Resolutions. I had … Continue reading New Year…new directions →

I have an acquaintance who seems to see me in snapshots. She will reiterate things about my past life (events or things I have said) in group conversations as if that is who I am. It is always a surprise to me that that is how someone might see me...as a static picture. I have … Continue reading Life is not static, nor am I. →

Last night I was out to dinner with a group of friends. I must have been in a chatty mood as I ended up asking everyone if they had begun to think of New Year's Resolutions, since the New Year is only a couple of weeks away. If you have been following my blog, you … Continue reading Finding out my differences →

Dictionary.com defines contemplation as: 1. the act of contemplating; thoughtful observation. 2. full or deep consideration; reflection: religious contemplation. 3. purpose or intention. 4. prospect or expectation. For me, winter means rest...a time for reflecting on what has been and a time for planning for what is to come. It is a time for making … Continue reading A Winter’s Contemplation →

In Judaism, there is the concept of "lashon hara"...speaking evil. Wikipedia translates this as derogatory speech about another person. Chabad calls it negative talk. MyJewishLearning says it is scandal-mongering (which for me would need more definition). Halachipedia defines it as "any form of speech or communication that may harm someone else emotionally, financially, physically or … Continue reading Talking too much →

Sometimes just picking a title for my thoughts is a way of deciding what I will write about. Sometimes it helps clarify the direction of my writing. Sometimes I find that the title changes by the end of the blog. And...sometimes, well...it just is. I started thinking today about a previous blog I wrote (October … Continue reading Decisions and hopes →