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Do You See the Mystery?

Posted on June 24, 2014 - by Paul Coleman

The first time I saw the ocean, I was fifteen. I walked up a slight hill. The water was not yet in view, but the sky already seemed different, as if it knew what I was about to behold. No buildings, no trees obscured my view. I reached the top of the hill and there was the ocean — magnificent in its vastness, in its power. I was thunderstruck. To this day, the sight of the ocean astounds me and fills me with wonder. Perhaps, if I was fortunate enough to have a house on the beach I’d get so […]

I Found Hope, Healing and Grace in the Humanity of Christ

Posted on June 24, 2014 - by Charles W. Sidoti

An excerpt from Fortune Cookie Wisdom: a contemplative perspective This reflection is about how we discover the truth in our lives. “From error to error, one discovers the entire truth” – Dr. Sigmund Freud, Austrian psychologist (1856-1939). Could Jesus, while he walked the earth, identify with Freud’s statement? If the words are applicable to the human condition it is reasonable to assume that the answer is “yes.” For Christians, the great mystery of Jesus is that he was truly human and truly God. A Jesus without the truly human aspect leaves only the divine, which would mean that he wasn’t really […]

God’s Plan in the Grocery Store

Posted on June 24, 2014 - by Shannon Harris

With my whole heart I can say that I am not afraid of anything in life now that I’ve watched my son die. Nothing can ever be harder than that moment in time; therefore, I have nothing to fear. Death itself no longer scares me, either, knowing he is waiting for me on the other side. There are, however, a few land mines that I run into every once in a while that catch me off guard. Explosions of anger, frustration or sadness that turn me inside out and make me come unglued. You know what I’m talking about. You’re […]

Reflections of my Independence as a Widow

Posted on June 20, 2014 - by Paula Ezop

I consider myself an independent woman, something that when I was a young girl I would have been very proud of. I would have been proud of the fact that I had a good job, proud of the fact that I had my own place, proud of the fact that I supported myself, and that my finances were in order. Proud of the fact that I was a published author, and extremely proud of the fact that I was confident in making decisions and handling my affairs. Yes, I am an independent woman, but I am also a widow, which […]

Depression in the Workplace Can Be Fatal

Posted on June 16, 2014 - by Carol Loehr

with workplace commentary by Sandra Turner, Ph.D In the early morning hours on March 29, 1999, our son Keith died by suicide. Keith suffered from depression caused by the stress he experienced in his place of work—a company where he had worked for only a short seven months of his life. Growing up, Keith was full of life; he was a boy who was always able to conquer anything he set his mind to do. Keith’s zest for life was evident even as a young boy on the ice—trying his new skates when he was not quite three years old. […]

Father-Daughter Bond Continues Beyond the Grave

Posted on June 15, 2014 - by Jane Simington

My last visit with my father began three days before his passing. I had known him as a man of few words, so the intensity and depth of the conversation we shared about the life we had spent together marked me indelibly. He emphasized that he wished he “had been able to do more [for me],” “to give [me] more.” My simple response, “Daddy, you gave me life; you gave me my education. I could ask for nothing more,” affirmed the roles that he had played in my life. I left my father’s room that evening believing I would never […]

Resilience After Death of a Daughter

Posted on June 14, 2014 - by Alan Pedersen

Life did not prepare me for August 15, 2001. In one moment on a very ordinary day, the world as I knew it inexplicably changed. I answered the phone to the panicked voice of a friend telling me that my 18-year-old and only daughter Ashley had been killed in an automobile accident. Little did I know that this one single moment in time would become the demarcation point in my life. Time just stopped, I felt frozen and in disbelief, I was paralyzed and in shock. Somehow I stumbled through the fog and within a few days of Ashley’s death, […]

My Father’s Final Gift

Posted on June 14, 2014 - by Paula Ezop

I would like to share my father’s final gift with you – a gift he unknowingly gave to me in death. I received this most precious gift on a beautiful sunny day in April. I’ll never forget the sky, it was so blue and the air was so crisp – God had created a simply gorgeous Spring day. It was hard for me to imagine that anyone (much less my father) could be dying on such a glorious, beautiful day… I remember I didn’t want to go to the hospital to visit my father on that beautiful day. I knew I […]

Letter to a Lost Father

Posted on June 13, 2014 - by Lisa Khuraibet

Dear Dad, It’s been 26 years since we last celebrated Father’s Day together. I think about your time here on Earth and I rejoice in your spirit. Born in the early 1900’s, you saw so many things. You were raised Jewish, yet you chose to let us be who we were; it did not matter to you if we were Jewish or Christian, as long as we had a faith in God. I remember your love of Christmas trees and we had one every year, just because you didn’t. You said you wanted one as a child and couldn’t have […]

Surviving Grief without Losing Your Mind

Posted on June 12, 2014 - by Beth Marshall

Losing someone you love is like having part of your heart ripped out. Whether death came through sudden catastrophe or a drawn-out disease where there was time to prepare, grief often leaves us with more questions than answers. •What do I do with all the regrets? •Why do people say crazy things when they’re trying to help? •Shouldn’t I be able to power through the sorrow on my own? Grief is a process and there are three challenges almost everyone goes through: 1. Rehashing regrets is like riding a stationary bicycle. You’ll go round and round to the point of […]