Well if there is one thing that I am missing this summer it is my oceanside vacation. Road trip, catch up with my American family, the sun-touched skin of my girls, iced coffee by the shore, reading to the sound of ocean waves, ice cream, seafood, shopping. I am not beyond continuing to count my blessings; we must soldier on during this time of uncertainty. To ease my blue feeling, I found a poem. It reminds that, with time and patience, the ocean will be waiting to greet me

In Shefali Tsabary's book "The Awakened Family" she lists what she terms life enhancing boundaries: Respect for oneself - self-care through hygiene and sleep. Respect for one's environment - a tidy room and house. Respect for one's mind - the process of education either formally or informally. Respect for family and community - connecting and contributing to society. What a lovely way to consider a balanced life. The word boundaries emphasizes that we can be steadfast in o

We are experiencing a time of change; the pandemic is still rolling along, ebbing and flowing in accordance with society's adherence or lack thereof. We have reached a point where getting back to "normal" has proven to bring lots of mixed feelings that runs the spectrum - from those who are outraged about having to wear a mask in public places, to those who experience paranoia and panic. There are those who feel returning to work and life is necessary and those who have sett

When one person in the relationship has had an affair, the effects of that betrayal can be devastating. When we are blindsided by the knowledge that our partner has been unfaithful, it can throw us into a vortex of raw feelings and we may wonder if the relationship can ever survive it. In order for a relationship to survive infidelity, some things need to be considered: Are both parties wanting to move towards reconciliation? Very often, the choice to have an affair is base

There are times in our lives that we can look back with regret. Perhaps we wish we could take back something we said or did; perhaps we left something unsaid, perhaps we wish we could have done something and now it is too late. "If given the opportunity, what would you go back and rewrite?" I appreciate the way this question is worded as it implies that our story includes choice. Perhaps there is a wrong that can be righted, or we can set a goal in relation to a regret. Mine

June is Pride month. Every year, the LGBT+ community celebrates solidarity through various events. Here are some interesting facts about Pride: The month of June is significant due to the Stonewall Riots; a 1969 movement that resulted after the Stonewall Inn, a gay club in NYC, was raided by police. For 6 days, protestors sent out the message that LGBT+ people needed to be able to establish places in which they could be open about their sexual orientation without fear of bein

June is seniors month! Although we can appreciate the elderly people in our lives all year long, it is especially heartwarming to know that a month has been dedicated to them - and such a lovely month as well. We can learn a lot from people who have had life long experience - I loved being around my grandparents; there was a calmness to their energy that I admired. As we lived many miles away from each other, part of our communication included hand written letters; it was alw

Yesterday's post defined the Japanese concept of Ikigai, which means 'reason for being.' In today's post, we explore 10 Rules of Ikigai brought to us by authors Héctor García and Francesc Miralles in their book entitled “IKIGAI: The Japanese Secret To a Long and Happy Life.” Stay active; don't retire. This is about finding value is our lives outside of when our professional lives end. It is about the activities we choose that allow us to bring purpose into our lives. Take

Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means 'reason for being.' It combines the Japanese words 'iki' which means life , and 'gai' which means value or worth. In an article entitled "Ikigai Explained by a Neuroscientist" and featured on IkigaiTribe , we meet Ken Mogi. He explains that in Japanese culture, there is a belief that the world is made of many small things which are valuable in themselves. Ikigai is the pursuit of day to day purpose and happiness: When we are in the

Keeping your bones healthy starts at birth and is important all your life. Nutrition and exercise play a critical role in keeping bones...

This question is for all the people pleasers; it's for those of us who have trouble with the word "No," and can tend to take on too much as a result. "Am I honouring myself while serving others?" Very often, we can become people pleasers because of our internal need to give; to take care of - hence the propensity to say "yes." When we feel naturally inclined to help; we get meaning and purpose from serving others. This is a lovely quality and one that we don't want to comprom

Oprah Winfrey has a new podcast that brings some of her Oprah Winfrey Show episodes out of the vault. In an episode entitled, "Lifestyle Makeovers: How to Set Personal Boundaries," she features guest star Cheryl Richardson who explains the importance of setting boundaries. She talks about language, and the phrases that we can begin to use as part of our vocabulary: "I have permission to change my mind." "I need you to hear what I'm saying." "I'm not going to make a decision

When speaking to clients about how their lives have been affected by the pandemic, there are often comments about the good that will come out of this. In an article entitled, "Surprising But Positive Consequences of Sheltering in Place" by Dena Kouremetis and featured on Psychology Today, she shares some thoughts about that very topic. Some of those include (paraphrased): "People who are staying at home are more aware of their surroundings and as a result, upgrades are occu

I came across this passage that reminded me of why this time of year is so refreshing: "I don't have a favourite season, I have a favourite feeling. It's the windows open, silent back roads with dirty bare feet feeling. It's when I can walk straight outside without pausing to fish out a jacket. It is curtains dancing around my room because of the cool breeze that brushes against the fabric. It is the sunset after desert and grass as my pillow. The sound of lawnmowers, of fall

Today's self-reflection question is one that feels timely to me: "What is life asking of me?" Right now, I would answer that by saying that life right now is asking that I keep things simple . Working from home and keeping up a routine that allows me to get outside and feel refreshed. Daily prayer in the morning, walks with Cricket, finding time to read, cooking supper every evening, drives for a DQ treat, shows in the evening with Kurt. Life is asking that I stay in touch w

During the time of my marital separation, I stumbled across a self-care strategy that proved to be quite instrumental in the starting of my day. As part of my morning routine (when the kids were still in bed), I would watch an episode of Three's Company. One of my all time favourite shows, it brought about good, cozy feelings - as it reminded me of my childhood - and it would bring a chuckle to the beginning of my day, starting it off on a good note. We know, scientically,

In our wrap up post about money and emotions, today we explore the money script (Klontz & Klontz) of Money Vigilance . Those who ascribe to this script put a lot of emphasis on saving money and tend to have their financial affairs in order. The money vigilant are less likely to buy on credit and are discrete about their financial status with others. "The Money Vigilant are alert, watchful, and concerned about their financial health. While Money Vigilance encourages saving an

So far in our series about money scripts (Klontz & Klontz), we have explored Money Avoidance and Money Worship; today we look at Money Status. We have all heard of the expression "keeping up with the Jones's" - this is where Money Status comes to light, as people who ascribe to this money script often associate their self-worth to their net worth. Pulled to show off their wealth to others and wanting to impress, can sometimes lead these individuals into going into debt to

Moving right along in our exploration of money scripts (Klontz & Klontz), today we take a look at Money Worship. Money Worship is the belief that having more money will be the answer to your troubles and will make you happy. People who ascribe to this script also believe that you can never have enough money and tend to never quite be satisfied with the amount that they have. "Money Worshipers are prone to buying things in an attempt to achieve happiness. They are also more

Yesterday we began a series on money and emotions; introducing the notion of money scripts (Klontz & Klontz). Typically developed in childhood, money scripts are unconscious beliefs about money that tend to be generational, cultural and contain only partial truths. Today we will explore the money belief pattern known as Money Avoidance. Money Avoidance is based on a negative belief about money. Money avoiders tend to pay less attention to their financial situation, will oft