Category: Mindfulness
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God’s Gifts
Hello, and Happy Memorial Day, tender friends! As you head out to your barbecues or other celebrations while we wait out the rain here in Virginia, I wanted to share this moment of gratitude. I had one of those moments this weekend. Those moments that make you ask, “Why God, why do I get all…
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Choose How You Show Up
Hello, tender friends! In the spirit of choosing how I show up, I decided to dress up in a nice shirt for a work function even though it wasn’t necessary. I had almost 3 hours of driving round trip that day, and I was determined to make it a treat for myself. It worked. Making…
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Why I’m Embracing Rage
Hello, tender friends! For most of my life, I’ve sublimated anger, ashamed of it. I sublimated it so successfully that it wasn’t until I was 20-something that I acknowledged it. I felt like I was observing an alien that day. “I’m so angry,” I choked out, surprising myself. I had no idea how violently the…
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Decluttering Makes Me Feel Closer to God
Hello, tender friends! While I’ve posted about decluttering before, I’m going much deeper now and starting to feel a spiritual shift. I know, I know, I was skeptical about Marie Kondo’s idea that tidying up could be “life-changing.” But after a few rounds of decluttering, my mood was elevated. Now I’m taking it farther than…
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Why I’m Embracing Self-Compassion
Hello tender friends! (I wanted to get the fact that I’m a real person out of the way right at the beginning because the post gets a little serious. I tried to get Cubby in the photo, but he was having way too much fun with his buddy on the trampoline.) I’m convinced that most…
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Go Hug Yourself!
Hello, tender friends! No, I’m not mad, but this is my new phrase for when someone cuts me off while driving. If I understood how hashtags actually work, I’d say #gohugyourself. I’ve been giving myself hugs for the past few weeks when I’m upset. Maybe that’s schmaltzy, but it turns out I like schmaltz. I…
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Joy is Free
Hello, tender friends! Joy is simple, like a tulip. Joy is simple, like bare hands in dark soil. Joy is simple, like a belly laugh from a 3-year old. At the gas pump last Sunday morning, I relished Cub’s joy. While Anthony stood outside my car filling my tank, he ducked down so Cub couldn’t…
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7 Strategies for Increasing Emotional Resilience
Hello, tender friends! We don’t need to live enslaved to our emotions, but I didn’t know how to break free for for far too long. I spent years praying that God would reveal the desires of my own heart to me. Years. I was so disconnected from myself that I didn’t even know what would…
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3 Blessings Discovered Through Decluttering
Hello, tender friends! Ahh, a steaming cup of tea in a decluttered living room. This is one of my great life’s pleasures. The wood floors seem shinier these days and my head feels clearer as I’ve gotten in touch with what brings me joy. This decluttering is a process. A marathon and not a sprint.…
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Take a Peek at My Book
Hello, tender friends! John Lennon sang You may say I’m a dreamer/But I’m not the only one I hope someday you’ll join us/And the world may be as one I love this idea of dreaming as something promoting a more unified world. Maybe Lennon was right. Maybe indulging our dreams makes us more whole and…
tea and tenderness 