The holiday season brings fellowship and hope to the world but the next few weeks also usher in a deeper level of sadness and despair for people living with grief and loss. For many… A simple trip to the grocery store provokes unexpected, choking tears while standing in front of store shelves and mindlessly looking […]
You Are Not Alone These are life-giving words for women and men in the often silent pain of miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. (I would like to include adult child loss today as well.) I’ve had the privilege of hearing many of your stories and sharing mine in the hopes of encouraging each other to […]
My mom loves butterflies. She buys flowers and herbs to attract them—dill, rue, and butterfly weed have annual planting appointments in her patio pots and flowerbeds. During the warm days of spring and summer she watches closely for a variety of butterflies to lay their eggs and monitors where the tiny specks appear. Then begins […]
Is the back-to-school season a difficult time for you because of infertility, singleness, miscarriage, or child loss? My friend, Kelley Mathews, generously shared her blog space at Patheos for me to offer a few suggestions on transforming this pain (link below) into hopeful purpose. Be encouraged. You are not alone. Original post on Patheos
Unlike Snoopy’s happy dance, June can rob me of motivation to do much more than take slow motion baby steps forward. Do you ever dread stepping into a certain month? Never would I have imagined that an entire month would challenge my contentment the way June has for the last 12 years. This year, especially. […]
Hot summer days remind me of joyful times in childhood with the neighborhood kids. Playing tag, running around, climbing trees, riding bicycles. Especially riding bikes. Sneakers pedaling as fast as small feet allow, wind blowing through our hair, singing silly songs as we ride down alleys and streets, exploring the space where we live. Freedom. […]
Inhaling deeply, I stepped on the swinging tire that hung above the water. The hole in the middle appeared HUGE and the tire rim that was my step target looked thin and inadequate. That first step overwhelmed my being. Then I heard my nephew calling encouragement from behind. “You can do this, Aunt Julie. Just […]
Have you ever wondered what you can give someone who has suffered a miscarriage, stillbirth, or child loss? The most treasured gifts are often the smallest. The Gift The first angel came from my sister as a sweet token of remembrance after a doctor’s appointment. The news I had received was bleak – the tiny […]