An Invincible Summer - A Woman's Journey

The house continues to empty out into the garage. Belongings put into boxes...most going to storage for the next 4 or 5 weeks. I wonder.....do I really need these things if I can live without them for next month or so? Some yes, some no. I look forward to sorting these boxes out and doing a 2nd garage sale in less than 2 months. Lifting the weight of STUFF off of my shoulders. I watched a TED talk that talked about minimalism. I may try a modified version of it. Packing up your entire belongings and getting rid of everything you were not forced to unpack in the following 30 days. That's a bit extreme for me, as it doesn't account for the little treasures children bestowed upon their lucky recipients that jogs beautiful memories.  Or the last Christmas gift from Mom before she died...whether I liked it or not. Still too precious to give up....at least for now. I have a loved one that would be considered a hoarder by any account. Her "stuff" owns her. That's ...

It's been awhile.  That's good really.  It means not too low and not too high, just a steady making my way. I like it this way. I am diligently packing and attending my meetings. Making headway in my relationships with the people I love. Hopefully being more available and less judging. The house hunt continues and I work hard on trusting that God has a plan that he has yet to reveal. I have an offer in on a tiny little house in town. I love the idea of downsizing but know it will have its challenges. Meanwhile, I would like it if the house would pass inspection and life would move forward. I remind myself to live in the moment and enjoy the last few weeks in the home I love but that now belongs to someone else. Also important to enjoy the beach rental I will have for the next 4 weeks. Good price and allows my pets...YAY!!! My son, at school in Portland, will not get to see our house again and that makes us both a little sad. He put a lot of hard work in that once all dir...

When being grateful outweighs the pain, you know you will recover. You know you can love and laugh and live a life with purpose. The weight of anger and pain and, dare I say, hatred is considerable, so burdensome. At times, the need to feel justified, validated by onlookers, perhaps even pitied (guilty as charged) can keep you in that horrible place.  But life moves forward. If you are wise or if you have someone around that helps you open your eyes or if you can somehow see how much damage it does to your heart and to the ones that love you, you can try to drag yourself up. Some people forgive so easy. I am not that person. But I've got a God that wants so much more for me than anger and spite. He has begun the softening of my rough edges and pointed out those areas that need work. Some that I knew of but held onto like an treasured family heirloom and some I simply was not conscious of. Our families of origin helped form the people we are; good, bad or otherwise. I li...