Category Archives: Inner Sruggles and Heartache

Dogs Have The Right Idea

I saw a bumper sticker a couple of years ago that left me laughing out loud, in the car, by myself. It imagesaid, “Wag more, bark less.” My dogs are happy dogs. Their joy is quite visible, they wag their tails more times a day than I can count. We all enjoy a dog’s expression of joy–that whirl of wags and wiggles. But, we become easily annoyed when the barking begins. It’s obvious that barking is also stressful for the barking dog. Though funny at first, the true meaning of that quote sunk in, and hit too close to home.

When I was a single mother, I did too much barking and not enough wagging at home. I struggled so much with the my financial situation. I was often anxious, frustrated, and mentally and physically exhausted. My ex-husband didn’t pay child support. Living in a community property state, meant I was also responsible for the unpaid debts he left when he disappeared. I had no family to turn to, and three teenage kids to support. The paychecks I received from multiple part time jobs, only covered three-fourths of the bills. Paying bills became a recurring, juggling act. I grew weary of the threatening, red-letter notices in the mail.

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Filed under Awed by His Love and Grace, Everydayliving, Following Christ Has Changed My Life, Inner Sruggles and Heartache, Just for Fun, Life Lessons, Seeds of Inspirations, Single Parent Struggles, Writing and Author Stuff

Blessed Dreams

imageSometimes it hits me. The grief, the still foreign concept. I lost a child. He was 27 years old when he died in September of 2011, but he was still my child. They say the loss of a child by far is the heaviest of losses a soul can bear. I agree.

I found another thing they say to be true. They, being the experts on grief and loss. The second year of loss is the worst. I agree. The reality pools around one’s feet. The permanency of this kind of loss becomes a stagnant puddle one must wade through.

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Filed under Awed by His Love and Grace, Everydayliving, Following Christ Has Changed My Life, Inner Sruggles and Heartache, Life Lessons, Loss of a Child, Seeds of Inspirations

Keep Knocking, Keep Seeking, Keep Asking

breadImagine you and your family are sound asleep after a long day. You wake up to loud rapping on your door. You shoot a blurry-eyed glance at the clock on your nightstand. A red 12:00 midnight glares back. The continued rapping makes you realize you weren’t dreaming. You throw on a robe, and rush to your bedroom window, fearing the worst.

Your friend is standing on your porch with a very concerned look on his face. You open the window and loudly whisper. “What’s going on? It’s midnight!”

“Hey friend, I have unexpected company and need to borrow some bread,” he says.

“Bread? That’s what this is all about? Sheesh, I thought somebody died! Come back tomorrow?”

“I need to feed my guests. Can you lend me some bread?” He insists.

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Filed under Awed by His Love and Grace, Everydayliving, Inner Sruggles and Heartache, Life Lessons, Seeds of Inspirations

Author’s B-Log

As I said in the About page, I loved to write when I was young. I wrote poems and silly stories. Even when I wasn’t writing, my mind was creative with words. When my kids were young they loved my made up stories. I’d make one up on the spur-of-the-moment, winging it as I went along then forget the details when they’d beg me to retell it. Each time I’d tell it differently.  They would say something like, “No Mom, the giant lived on the mountain, not in the forest!” And so on. I had as much fun hearing them correct me as I had telling the stories. Continue reading

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Filed under Author's B-Log, Following Christ Has Changed My Life, Inner Sruggles and Heartache, Life Lessons, Writing and Author Stuff