Coping is non-linear, messy and ongoing. And yet, there is still so much beauty…
Things To Be Grateful For When Life Is Sh*tty And Hard
In ordinary life, we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich. ~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer Hey, Lovelies. I was speaking with a friend yesterday who is going through a very rough, very dark patch in her life. She has […]
What Will People Think?
We are all wonderful, beautiful wrecks. That’s what connects us–that we’re all broken, all beautifully imperfect. Emilio Estevez Hey, Lovelies. I had an interesting conversation with a friend of mine, Michael, yesterday. He called me specifically to discuss the fact that I blogged about seeing a therapist. ‘Why did you do that?’ he wanted to […]
One Of The Best Gifts I Ever Gave Myself
The best gift I ever gave myself is a gift that keeps enriching my days. It’s a gift of time and care, of comfort and support, of gentle and of hard questions, and sometimes, hard answers. It’s the way I manage life. The way I cope with the things that should break me. I highly recommend it…
You Can Be Strong AND Scared and that’s okay!
Bran thought about it. ‘Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?’ ‘That is the only time a man can be brave,’ his father told him. George R.R. Martin – A Game Of Thrones Hey, Lovelies. I’ve been busy this past few weeks, supporting some of our community through some really tough stuff and […]
Stop Being So Hard On Yourself
Butterflies can’t see their wings. They can’t see how truly beautiful they are, but everyone else can. People are like that as well. Naya Rivera Hey, Lovelies! My inbox is groaning this week with messages from people who are really struggling right now. If you’re having a hard time too, please know that you’re not […]
For You Who Are Weary And Don’t Know Why
Let me ask you outright, gentle reader, if there have not been hours, indeed whole days and weeks of your life, during which all your usual activities were painfully repugnant, and everything you believed in and valued seemed foolish and worthless? E.T.A. Hoffmann Hello, Lovely. Many of my community have been asking me if there […]
Sometimes Healing Means Closing The Door On Something
It is always important to know when something has reached its end. Closing circles, shutting doors, finishing chapters, it doesn’t matter what we call it; what matters is to leave in the past those moments in life that are over. Paulo Coelho Hey, Lovelies. Once upon a time I used to think that in order […]
My Top Coping Strategies For When Life Gets Really Hard
It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change. Leon C. Megginson Hey, Lovelies. I’ve just come off the back of an unexpected period of intense and stressful days. Lots of family stuff. Some big decisions after life suddenly changed. A stupid amount of work […]
Coping Skills for Overwhelm In These Intense Times
“The most significant gifts are the ones most easily overlooked. Small, everyday blessings: woods, health, music, laughter, memories, books, family, friends, second chances, warm fireplaces, and all the footprints scattered throughout our days.” Sue Monk Kidd Hey, Lovelies. Are you doing okay? It’s a crazy time, isn’t it? So many things that need attending to. […]
Do you feel empty and exhausted too?
“I feel like this Nicole. Like if I let myself rest for as long as I need I might not wake for a whole month. How many of us have been walking around, hollowed our shells of humans for years and years on end. Social distancing has given me a welcome reason to withdraw at […]
How to stay home, work from home and stay sane
“Everyone is driven by the need to fill their life with meaning. Sometimes this need is articulated clearly and then a purpose emerges and that leads to a sense of direction and a sense of mission. Most times it is not. So the void is filled with action. People have kids, gets mortgages, raise families, […]
Accepting Loss As A Coping Strategy – Advice for Dealing With The Disruption Caused by Coronavirus
“It’s so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shone.” John Steinbeck Hello, Lovelies. During a conversation with someone from the chronic illness community yesterday, we compared notes on how part of our own journey of coping – with difficult diagnoses and prognoses and the devastating […]
Just Breathe – It’s a Magical Superpower
“The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.” ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn the next time you want to screamthe next time you want to crythe next time you feel all alonethe next time the pain is unbearablethe next time life is squeezing you so hard it hurtsthe next time you have no idea what to […]
Nicole Update and a Pep Talk!
“I do not think that there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.”~ John D. Rockefeller Hello, Lovelies!Thanks so much for all the love and positive energy that has flowed my way the past week or so. I’ve felt it, […]
Sorry You Missed Me Yesterday…
“Persistence and resilience only come from having been given the chance to work through difficult problems.” ~ Gever Tulley I was intending to blog yesterday, and then I couldn’t. Early on Monday morning I was strapped into a heart monitor and holder for twenty-four hours, and while I was wired I had to stay […]
Small Steps and A Pep Talk For Hard Days
“Small steps may appear unimpressive, but don’t be deceived. They are the means by which perspectives are subtly altered, mountains are gradually scaled, and lives are drastically changed.” ~ Richelle E. Goodrich As most of you know, I am recovering from illness right now. I’ve just finished two months of bed rest and am […]
Don’t Isolate Yourself When the Going’s Hard
“No person, trying to take responsibility for her or his identity, should have to be so alone. There must be those among whom we can sit down and weep, and still be counted as warriors.” ~ Adrienne Rich I’ve noticed a worrying phenomena lately. People are going to great lengths to make their life […]
Sometimes You Don’t Need Solutions, You Just Need To Be Heard
“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” ~ Leo Buscaglia Ben and I met a close girlfriend for coffee yesterday. We’re each going through quite a […]
Where’s Your Focus?
“Very occasionally, if you pay really close attention, life doesn’t suck.” ~ Joss Whedon On Friday I posted about a beautiful ordinary day, and how much I had enjoyed such simple things as a trip to the farmers’ markets, clean sheets on the line, sunshine and crisp ripe apples. After that post I received two emails, extracts of […]
Balancing Act
“Your hand opens and closes, opens and closes. If it were always a fist or always stretched open, you would be paralysed. Your deepest presence is in every small contracting and expanding, the two as beautifully balanced and coordinated as birds’ wings.” ~ Rumi, The Essential Rumi Occasionally things happen which give my world a good […]
Sometimes Resting IS Progress!
“Most of the things we need to be most fully alive never come in busyness. They grow in rest.” ~ Mark Buchanan I’ve slept away another day. Perhaps I’ll do the same with this day too. But that’s okay. Resting begets healing. In repose we consolidate knowledge and even our muscles use the time to […]
Three Key Strategies for Dealing with Life’s Hardships
“And once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s […]
Sometimes You Just Need to Take a Deep Breath…
“You have to just relax, calm down, take a deep breath and try to see how you can make things work rather than complain about how they’re wrong.” ~ Tom Welling We’ve all been there. Disappointments. Things that don’t go to plan. Endings we weren’t expecting. Futures that don’t conform to what we’d been led […]
How to Get Through the Hard Stuff
“Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” ~ Christopher Robin to Pooh (by A. A. Milne) Life. It’s just hard sometimes. I know, I know. There’s a library full of books out there on the magic of positive thinking, positive attitudes, thinking beautiful […]
Just this moment…
“I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.” ~ Groucho Marx It started with a twinge. Just a twinge. So insignificant I […]
Everything changes…
Nothing that is can pause or stay; The moon will wax, the moon will wane, The mist and cloud will turn to rain, The rain to mist and cloud again, Tomorrow be today. ~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Take heart, because everything changes. No matter how stuck you feel right now, how burdened or exhausted or unhappy, […]