I have really been thinking about my focus word for 2024!  Words that I have nurtured in the past several years have focused on nourishment, joy, resilience.  All great words.  I think I’ve said before that I love four letter words and how they feel rolling out of my mouth.  Hope is one of those words, but as I got to thinking for this year, I had no idea what word was going to call my name. As I was driving down the street the other day, I began querying the street signs for a message.  Court?  Uh, no.  Walnut?  Not inspiring.  Ocean?  Well ..read more

For those of you who are new to this blog or may have forgotten, last year, I shared with each of you a word of the day. I am starting the month of November, much like I did last year, focusing on a word of the day. This year, I’m not using four letter words at all! I’m on my best behavior. As much as I love, love, love four letter words and the way that they roll off my tongue, this month we are talking about three letter words. I will give you a caveat though – I might need to resort to an acronym if I hit a dry writer’s patch. I found that there was value in this exercise last year. In fact ..read more

I have begun to look forward to the fall finally! I have had an amazing summer with a two-week trip to Greece with my siblings and their families. I have enjoyed paddle boarding all summer and hoping to get a few more days in before our official fall time. I also moved into a new home about a month ago, so this move has been the impetus for this week's word of the week. I would encourage you also to find your word of the week and find renewal with positivity. The word is home! In a sense, it is four walls filled with love, memories, smells of baking cookies and lots of emotions. We are also e ..read more

I can't remember if I told you all that I had a book all drawn out in my mind. It has been floating around like a ping pong ball between my two ears. It's all about mantra being medicine for the mind and heart and, ultimately, the body. I would love to see any science behind this concept, but have not had a chance to dive into that! I sincerely believe that optimism and hope drive success. That is not to say there will be no struggles or that it will be easy. What I'm saying is that the optimism and hope will allow you to come out on the other end of whatever struggle you have with a look bac ..read more

This year has been a whirlwind of busyness. Weddings and funerals. Estate paperwork. Trips to Texas, Arizona and Florida. Relationships. Love. Sorrow. And, still, there is hope. Hope is a four-letter word. That sounds so incredibly obvious. But the four-letter word that is my nemesis is the word, rest. I was recently reminded from a hippie friend from Singapore that I needed to remember that rest was a verb. So, what did she actually mean by that? I believe that she was conveying to me that I needed to be active in my decision to rest. To realize that it was an action that I could choose to ..read more

There are lots of organizations out there and people that are providing support to hippies worldwide! One organization who does this is the Hippies Club of Baton Rouge. Kelli Kirkland is a cofounder, patient and a Physical Therapy Assistant. She has seen both sides of this injury. The organization's mission statement is "to provide a community of support and education for those with hip pain." I asked Kelli what her intent was in forming the club. She said her surgeon was actually the inspiration behind this organization. Her surgeon had discussed that there was really no support in the area ..read more

Note: This is a slightly revised version of what was posted last year. This week, in the U.S., there is a focus on gratitude. I find it a bit frustrating. Gratitude should have no boundaries. Gratitude should not have a day on the calendar. It should not be the focus of the fall season. Instead, gratitude should overwhelm with every breath taken. Every thought. Every fear. Every worry. Gratitude should walk hand in hand with all of those emotions. Why? Be grateful for fear and worry? Damn, it's because life is such a miracle. Last weekend, I enjoyed the outdoors. It was cold, but the sun was ..read more

Facing life with wisdom is a work in progress for me! Enjoy.... If You Are Wise Poet: William Arthur Ward If you are wise, you will forget yourself into greatness. Forget your rights but remember your responsibilities. Forget your inconveniences but remember your blessings. Forget your own accomplishments but remember your debts to others. Forget your privileges but remember your obligations. Follow the examples of Florence Nightingale, of Albert Schweitzer, of Abraham Lincoln, of Tom Dooley, and forget yourself into greatness. If you are wise, you will empty yourself into adventure. Remember ..read more

So, here is the scoop. I am struggling to find some more four-letter words and I really don't want to move on to five letter words just yet! For today's word of the day, I have decided that I'm going to venture out of the English language for a minute. The word of the day is será. It reminds me of a song that my dad loved, "Que Sera, Sera"...whatever will be, will be. In my world, it also means to be able to find peace with whatever situation you may find yourself in. My dad passed away about 17 years ago from a grade IV brain tumor, but we found this place called, "Whatever Will Be, Will Be ..read more

I literally did not think that I would be able to come up with a bunch of four-letter words for the word of the day in November, but with your help, I have. This next word can be used in a negative way. I have been told that I am full of it before so that is where my brain obviously goes with this next word, full. But, once again, flipping the script. The word full has such an amazing connotation that I hope you feel complete. Imagine your belly is full after your Thanksgiving meal. That is not always a good thing as you are uncomfortable, sluggish and just all around yucky. But imagine that ..read more