It Rolled In With the Tide...
Last week my sweet husband took me on a beach vacation. We left behind the holiday hustle to take in sun, sea and sanity. You'll never guess what rolled in with the tide...
If You Cannot Forgive, How Do You Forget?
If you cannot forgive, how do you forget?
In short, I say you don’t.
In my memoir, Room in the Heart, A childhood Undone, A Pact to Love Fulfilled, I discuss this very sensitive and controversial issue for survivors of all types of abuse. From my experience as both a sexual assault nurse and also a victim/survivor of emotional/physical abuse, I firmly believe we have no moral obligation to forgive those who have abused us. The moment they chose to harm us, our accountability for respecting their needs was declared null and void. Void…just like the part of us that used to feel safe from harm. Harm…what they promised us would never happen if we kept SAFE this secret that WE never agreed to keep in the first place.
Read MoreBaby... Always call me "Baby."
Sometimes from innocent moments come beauty in its rawest form. Sometimes we are looking for nothing, yet see what entices our eyes. And even sometimes, what we see frees us from external world events and externally imposed expectations, and brings us to such a special moment that fills our hearts with joy. It makes time stand till, so we can take it in. Don’t dare to blink! Even though this is just a moment, it can last throughout our lives. I hope it always will.
I awakened this morning with both a smile and a feeling that I hope will never leave me. I remembered how one of our sons and his girlfriend call one another “Baby.” Doesn’t that sound nice? I get it; not yet sounding earth-shaking to you, right? The thought that immediately followed this musing WAS earthshaking to me, and hopefully to you, too.
Read MoreWho Needs a Nursing or Any Degree?
A while back I attended my annual international forensic meeting. It was attended by both women and men who work in this highly specialized area of nursing, and included even sub-specialties within our practice. For all, the crux of the focus was the caring and compassion for our patients and their loved ones.
Throughout this meeting I continued to realize, more and more, that in reality, it is not just nurses who should specialize in caring and compassion for others. We all need to.
Read MoreNot Yet... If Only
This morning I read the Facebook post of a friend. I wish you knew her; she and her soul are simply beautiful. She is as stunning as she is humble.
Last year this time, Amy was searching for new ways to recycle leftover Thanksgiving dinner leftovers while simultaneously planning the family festivities for the upcoming Christmas holiday. Wearing the many hats of a young wife and mother, and balancing both her family's meals and a toddler on her knee, she started her holiday wish list.
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