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How to Face a Devastating Setback and Thrive
I wish I knew when a setback was headed my way. That way I could have time to prepare myself, somehow ward off the worst of its effects. But wishful thinking and looking into the future don’t really help in coping with a setback, particularly one that affects major areas of your life. I often read articles and studies dealing with stress and the consequences it can have on our minds and bodies. Apparently learning to cope with stress is an important life skill if you want to live past fifty. I often think of Job during a serious setback. Moses had some pretty awful ones as did many others…
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Repentance and the Way of Neuroplasticity
I once offended a woman by extolling the virtues of repentance to her. I believe the misunderstanding lay in our definition of the word. I think the image she had in her mind was of penitents on their knees making a painful trek to the Vatican. My image was of Christian in front of the Cross in Pilgrim’s Progress shedding his burden of sin and shame. Say the word repentance and we often default to condemnation and the list of our shortcomings we carry in the back of our minds. Of course, she may have just been angry at the idea that she had anything to repent of. We have…
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Body Memory: Relearning Safe and Happy
That our body can retain memory is probably no surprise to most women. We look at our grown children and remember the sweet weight of their infant bodies in our arms and how soft their little cheeks were to kiss. Thanksgiving is upon us and our mouths water remembering familiar holiday dishes or when the fragrance of pumpkin pie fills the house. The highway between smell and memory is a short one. But the tendency to store memories in our body can work against us, causing anxiety or dread to pop up in unexpected and inconvenient places. For me, to be in the presence of anger caused my body to…
Healing Through Art & Words
