Change takes time.  Especially in our laws, it seems.  But it is possible when we work together. As I wrote about seven familys’ stories of the loss of a child to the opioid crisis in the 2019 book Heartbroken – Grief and Hope Inside the Opioid Crisis, I promised the families, and myself, to find […]

Each summer, my husband, Bill, and I host our grandchildren four and older to a week of fun and time together. We call it Kamp Kindness. We go to special fun places and have camp-like activities – fires, crafts, swimming. And, we focus on being kind to each other. This year, Bill made up a […]

  This week my sister Annie laid her dear mother-in-law, Bernice, to rest.  At 93, and having been in an Alzheimer’s unit for many years, they rejoiced that she could finally be at peace.  Still, it was sad for the family and friends that loved her. I remember Bernice as a robust woman, full of […]

This week the CDC announced that fully vaccinated people didn’t need to wear masks inside or outside. A sign that we are heading back to normal.  The science tells us that the vaccines are highly protective, according to a recently released study on the CDC website.  At 94% effectiveness rate, they protect more than anticipated. […]

Last week, my husband Bill and I lost a dear friend.  Dorothy was our neighbor the last five years.  She became part of our family and we feel like part of hers.  Below she is in her kitchen, where we often visited and enjoyed time together. The day after she passed, some of her children, […]

I can close my eyes and remember, “The Moment” that the coronavirus became real for me.  Perhaps you can, too.  March 15th, 2020, I was in Cracker Barrel with Bill and our two kids, Joy and Ab, and four of our six grandchildren.  Not worried about face masks or social distancing.  Just enjoying the morning […]

Bill and I are in Texas this month.  In our cozy little camper.  We were grateful to head south to escape the cold Illinois weather.  We’d been to Florida a few times, so decided to try another spot. Little did we know we’d experience frigid temperatures, ice, and snow.  Loss of power, water, cell, and […]

COVID 19 has consumed much of our nation’s public and health official’s energy in 2020.  Rightly so.  The pandemic has had an unprecedented effect of our country, with 22 million cases and nearing 400,000 deaths. Another public-health disaster is also taking more lives than ever.  It is one that had the public and health official’s […]

“Have yourself a merry little Christmas Let your heart be light From now on Our troubles will be out of sight Have yourself a merry little Christmas Make the Yule-tide gay From now on Our troubles will be miles away The words to this song are familiar.  One of my favorite Christmas tunes.  Lilting, heavenly, […]

The Ladders is one of those emails that come into my inbox that I read most of the time.  It speaks to trends in the workplace, resume tips, job hunting ideas.  And sometimes the authors of the site have insightful thoughts that I pass on to friends and family.  This week’s post by the site’s […]