Follow Friday: A little self-absorbed

This week's Follow Friday didn't make the deadline. I have a few excuses.

I'm currently on Pacific Time so, technically, it's still Friday. Roger and I are in California and Sunday he will run his 10th marathon in Big Sur. This week, I've decided to feature some organizations near and dear to my heart that revolve around our current mission in California:

CJSTUF: Yes, most of you reading this know it is my current raison d'etre. This is where my parenting energies currently flow. Simply put, we help families who are where we have been. We don't cure disease. We don't solve the world's problems. But we try to make an unbearable situation a little more bearable. Every Day is a Bonus.

ASK: The organization that is the backbone of the hematology/oncology clinic at VCU Medical Center. This organization does so much for families of kids with cancer and related diseases, including funding for Child Life, Chaplaincy, Counseling, Social Work, and other support services. Their annual 5K is this weekend and we wish them the best of luck in their efforts.

I'll finish out the list with two other local Richmond organizations helping families effected by cancer:

ReeseStrong: Reese was diagnosed with medulloblastoma a week or two before Charlotte. Our families have shared many similar and parallel experiences. They are another great example of making good out of a crappy situation.

Connors Heroes: Connor is another survivor and Lisa and Steve Goodwin do their best to help families navigate the cancer nightmare with information, moral support, and care packages. They also fund research in an effort towards a cure.

So that will be my short Follow Friday for this week. Enjoy the royal weekend.

To everything there is a season

It's been a while since I used the blog to share my thoughts. What started as some random musings turned into much more than a Facebook post. I started writing this over a week ago but it's taken a minute to actually hit the publish button. Thanks for your patience. Welcome back. It has been a week (or two) . One of those weeks where everything happens all at once. A week where things need to happen in a particular order or everything‘s going to go to shit. A week where you just seem to go from one thing to the next thing and you’ll figure out what’s going to happen next as it goes along. A week full of work and family and rest and sleeplessness and it never feels like there’s enough time for anything. But somehow it all works out. A plaque on the library walk in NYC My week started with a trip for work to NYC. It coincided with my birthday. Because of that, I had all kinds of feelings all week about life in general. The week ended with a trip to Florida that, unfortun...

The Edge of Seventeen

It's that time of year when the blog musings center on my grief journey. Every year, it seems like we are busy with end-of-the-year school activities and the start of summer, planning vacations, and then (kablam)...it's almost July 9. Grief is funny. Grief is weird. I remember very early after Charlotte died, I watched the movie Rabbit Hole. There's an amazingly poignant scene where Nicole Kidman's character is talking with another woman who lost a child over 10 years before (played by Dianne Wiest). She talks about grief being like a brick in your pocket. It never goes away. Sometimes you can even forget it's there. But it comes back and makes its presence known from time to time. And (she says) "it's what you have of them." I probably did not fully realize then what a powerful and true analogy that is. As time goes on, our grief changes. Yet, it is always there on the edge of things. It sits in that pocket and sometimes makes itself known. This...

How to be Human

If the last few years have taught us anything, it is that life is complicated and challenging in many ways. Most days, I'm exhausted. Are you exhausted? During the early part of 2022, though, I had the chance to read three books that really helped me frame my frustration, angst, and anxiety about the world. All of these books are recently published, based on solid research, and approach their subjects in a way that makes them understandable and relatable to everyone. If you read even one of these books, I guarantee that you will learn things, gain perspective about the world, and discover insights about yourself and your humanity. Each book also touches on the role the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our lives and on our society so they are certainly timely. I will share my individual reviews for each book that I published on my Goodreads profile. If you have read any of these books recently, would love to hear your thoughts as well! Atlas of the Heart by Brene Bro...

I See What You Meme

Search This Blog