Journey to Joy

“There is a safe place to fall. Connect, embrace, love somebody, just one person and then spread that to two, and to as many as you can and you’ll see the difference it makes.” -Oprah You know that person who sits down next to you on a plane and before you’ve reached a comfortable cruising…

I have a lot of empathy for birth mothers. I wasn’t angry about being adopted. I didn’t feel abandoned or rejected. I put an “I don’t know” label on my adoption. For me it was always: I don’t know why I am adopted, but someday I will find out. I was curious. As a child,…

I don’t do tension. I had enough for a lifetime when it wasn’t my choice. When you are an adult, it’s your choice. When I first lived on my own, I realized the coolest thing was my ability to control the energy in my space. I pictured a Keep Out sign on tension. It’s so…

“It’s only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on Earth … and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up … will we then begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had.” –Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Mom. Cancer….

“The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.” –Flora Whittemore Have you ever thought about the power that exists in a single decision? One decision can change your life. A single decision changed mine. I was four months into my search for my birth mother and I was getting frustrated…

I used to be shocked when I’d meet people who appeared to have little to no self-awareness, and how they came across to others. I was baffled because the behavior was so insensitive, hurtful, selfish, clueless, or _______________ (fill in the blank!) that I couldn’t comprehend how anyone could knowingly act that way. Until one…

If my self-image had a gauge like a gas tank, the warning light was on and I was almost empty. When I think back to those years, I cringe. I got my opinions from others. I determined my worth by how much the man I was dating was into me. I thought I should only…

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” —Winston Churchill Back in my twenties, I had a boyfriend who was controlling. He hid it well at first, charming me with his confidence, his bartender status and sous chef talents. The crazy came rolling out after I was completely smitten. At first it was just, “Where were…

“Why not become conscious and make choices to create your life like an artist?” –Gary Zukav My husband does this great impression of me. He waves his arms and hands wildly in the air and sings “La Dee Dah” over and over. He enjoys mocking my carefree attitude, and it always makes me laugh. See,…

I think the worst kind of silence you can have is with yourself. You disconnect a little from what you are feeling. You live on the surface mentally. Days fly by with your regular routine and you never stop to ask yourself if you are content. It can even seem like a safe and comfortable…