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I don’t know about you, but in the recent past, I have tended to overthink, and overthink on all of the bad stuff - future anxieties, past decisions, social interactions, etc. I have replayed conversations, worried about what others think and have dwelled on ‘what if‘ scenarios. Finally, dread and a sense of hopelessness settle in, making it difficult for me to concentrate or make decisions.  Recently, I stumbled on a clip by Mr. Daryl Black (An inspiring speaker, author and

If you’ve read any of my previous blogs, particularly the one on “When the physical pain gets to be too much,” you’ll see that I’ve experienced a series of health problems over the years. This involved numerous doctor visits across various specialties and a myriad of testing procedures on different parts of me. Are there any medical situations that make you feel particularly nervous or apprehensive? For me, I prefer to be doing just about anything else than going to the denti

Last week, I struggled with major feelings of self-condemnation. It started out with a lack of motivation on my job and feeling like I was falling short at each turn. It transitioned into a disgust for the extra weight I had put on over the past few months. Finally, I became paralyzed with self-doubt in playing Pickleball. I couldn’t do anything right on the courts. It went from bad to worse, as I couldn’t get my serve over the net no matter how hard I tried. One of my PB fri

A month or so ago, I decided to treat myself to a massage during the week, as I had taken off the week to gain a bit of perspective, after my sister had passed. Lo and behold, it resulted in excruciating pain and a pinched nerve in my neck, leading to considerable shoulder pain. I went to a new ortho doctor and found out that I have arthritis in both of my shoulder joints and neck. Apparently, it is uncommon for someone in their mid 50s to have arthritis in the shoulders and

I’ve always known that there are seasons of life (or stages of life), much like the changing seasons of the year. I have also noticed that we have different seasons of life, from the perspective of faith. These seasons can represent different periods of growth, challenges, and spiritual development. I am finding that as I better understand these seasons, that it can provide me with a framework for navigating life’s experiences and finding purpose at different times. Over the

What does contentment look like for you? For a while now, I’ve been giving serious and careful thought to being content (happy or satisfied). My desire is to be content or even keeled in any situation that I find myself in, and to find my strength in Christ alone. To me, this means being calm in the midst of chaos, being at peace when dealing with difficult people, or whatever challenge comes my way. A favorite author of mine wrote “Not that I was ever in need, for I have lea

From time to time, my husband and I like to check-in with each other to see how the other one is doing. In our latest catch-up, my husband asked me a basic question, “What do you enjoy doing?” Of course, he knows what I like doing, but I think that he wanted to spur some additional conversation around this. I looked at him like a deer caught in a headlight, and I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t trying to be rude, but, for me, the answer was not so simple. He asked the question

It’s interesting, that the word “peace,” can mean different things to different people. “Freedom from disturbance or tranquility” is the dictionary’s definition of peace. For me, I resonate with this definition. However, what I have come to realize is that true peace is having a calmness or quiet mind, regardless of any change, uncertainty, or chaos surrounding me. Having said this, some days are easier to maintain peace or a quiet mind than others. Today was one of those dif

I don’t necessarily consider myself a Foodie; however, I love to eat good food, especially anything with potatoes. I consider myself a connoisseur of potatoes, just as Bubba Blue’s character in Forrest Gump declares his affinity for shrimp and “shrimp being the fruit of the sea.” I can easily make a meal of potatoes - Hashbrowns, baked potatoes, french fries, au gratin, scalloped, raw fries (BTW, they aren’t actually raw, but thinly sliced potatoes and onions sautéed in olive

This past week, I’ve been thinking about the emotion or spirit of fear and its healthy or unhealthy effect on my life. I believe that some fears can be healthy, especially when it comes to survival instincts. When we were living in Florida, I remember one of our neighbors called my husband in a panic, letting him know that they just found a poisonous snake in their backyard and asked him if he could come over immediately to help take care of it, which he did. Apparently, as s

I don’t know about you, but for me, the word “stress” has a negative connotation. Over the years, I’ve had many experiences with stress, some minor bouts of worry, others, positive events that were stressful, and also some close to debilitating experiences due to anxiety. I have read numerous books and conducted various research on the topic, with the ultimate goal of learning how to get through the worry or anxiety, to reduce or minimize it, and not allow it to affect my sle

As I was riding my peloton this morning, I was thinking about the power of our words, whether it is with our spouse, kids, pets, or even ourselves. We’ve all heard the saying that “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” But is that really true?  I don’t believe it’s true, as I’ve seen words affect not only how a person feels, but how they perceive the various events around them. For instance, if I was kind and spoke uplifting words to you, chance

Do you ever feel like you’re just going through the motions of life and wonder: am I taking life too seriously, shouldn’t I be enjoying myself more, isn’t there more to this life? Of course, we all have hectic lives, brimming full of responsibilities. However, lately, I’ve been thinking about the quality of my life and wondering and praying about how to do what I need to do, but to simplify my life and make it a joyful one? As you could probably see from a few of my previous

A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog on “Are your friendships like tonic and gratifying or are toxic and draining you?” While I was writing it, I came across the topic of loneliness, which piqued my interest. The article that I shared in that blog - “The science of why friendships keep us healthy” ( The science of friendship ( apa.org ) ) , mentions that “people who have friends and close confidants are more satisfied with their lives and less likely to suffer from depression.” Al

Recently, I had a few experiences that got me thinking about control and how it affects our lives. I would imagine that we all have engaged in some measure of controlling behavior, especially as most people want to maintain some sort of control over their lives.  Fun fact: When God created us, He created us with free will to make choices that are either good or bad, rather than try to control us. However, it seems as if there are many people who feel perfectly justified to tr

Last week, I published a blog on “Do your thoughts to define you?” This one has a different twist but includes some overlapping sentiments. By now, you can probably see from the compilation of blogs on my website, that I think a lot. I’m an analytical thinker and planner at the core. And, I wonder, if we were to take a look at our thoughts and actions, from the time we get up to the time we go to bed, what would that look like? In this previous blog, I mentioned that as human

Something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately is the power of our thoughts and the impact of our actions. If I were to ask you, do you dwell on your thoughts and do you believe that they contribute to defining who you are? Or do they flee as quickly as they enter your mind? And are you defined by your actions? As I was rapidly peddling on my Peloton, as I usually am early on Monday mornings, I was about two thirds of the way through my class and suddenly became extremely ex