December has always been a time for me to look back at the year to see what I’ve accomplished, what I’ve learned, where I’ve grown. And then to look ahead to the next year with what I want to accomplish, what I want to learn, where I’d like to grow. In past years I looked … Continue reading End of Year Thinking
To misquote Shakespeare, what exactly do I name this thing I’m dealing with - this aftermath of my life-quake.. Is it grief and mourning for a major loss? Is it natural disaster trauma and acute PTSD? Is it just another major life transition? Is it all of the above? As I looked further into loss … Continue reading What’s in a Name? Is it Grief? Is it Trauma?
I believe the Universe sends messages, if you’re open to hearing them. For me, being a lover of words, they tend to come in things I read. In Facebook posts, in blogger’s words, in essays I read, or in things I research (like my recent exploration of living with uncertainty – blog post link here). … Continue reading Conflicting Messages
I crave security. It’s one of my core values. I want to feel safe and have a sense of control over my life. It plays out in plans, to-do lists, accomplishment lists, creating routines, and staying within my comfort zone a lot. Even my career forte was strategic planning. But as I’ve learned once again, … Continue reading Living with Uncertainty
This blog is a bit of a ramble of what’s been happening in my life post the significant impact of two back-to-back Category 4 Hurricanes on our home in Florida. So many people reached out to help…it simply shocked me. Offers of hands & backs to help move things, offers of homes to stay in, … Continue reading An Update – 1 month Post Hurricane
I have not posted a blog in a few weeks. At first the blog running through my head was, “I Have Been Lying To Myself!”. It was about travel. I kept telling myself I was okay with being a homebody and not traveling. It seemed everyone else in retirement was traveling and I kept having … Continue reading Hurricane Number Two
Self-acceptance is an area I am working on this year (link to blog on WOTY). As part of working on self-acceptance, I am very aware of my tendency to rely on external validation. It’s also part of my perfectionism tendency. It shows up in me avoiding conflict and disagreements, often being overly accommodating, and spiraling … Continue reading A Deep Dive Into External Validation
Most folks probably won’t care about my summer research project. But I’m kind of proud of it. Some elements I’ve learned about my true self is I love to learn about new things, l can get lost for hours delving into research on a topic, and I adore synthesizing that research into “so what”. I … Continue reading My 2024 Summer Research Project – Plants!
Back in May, I talked about a new tool I was using called an I-Did-It List (link here to that post ). It’s an end of the month look back at the things I did - a form of self-validation to celebrate my accomplishments (however small), to boost appreciation of my life, and to feel “I … Continue reading August I-Did-It List – An End of Summer Review – A Fall Plan
I began active journaling early in my retirement after reading about Morning Pages from Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way. That book is her original one on the topic, which I find the best for learning about her creativity tools like Morning Pages. She has other books in the same space, and I’ve read both the one … Continue reading Exploring One of My Quirks – Journaling
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