I See What You Meme

The past week has seen such a whirlwind of activity, I almost forgot to share another major announcement.  As most of you know, when I'm not leading the uber-glamorous life of a newly published author or trying to keep things organized at CJSTUF , you can find me working at Commonwealth Autism Service .  As challenging as my job can be, I really love it.   Recently, I was offered a new challenge at work.  Our agency has been working with a local private school in the area for a few years now. Because of some developments in the past year, Commonwealth Autism Service has taken on a larger role in operating the school.  As of July 1st, not only will the Dominion School be operated by CAS but I was selected to be the principal.   Yes. You heard that correctly.  I am going to be the principal of a school.   Isn't that crazy? First of all, I'm honored that my boss and the others at my agency feel so strongly that I was the best candidate for the position.  With my

It is 12:30 AM and I am still so wired I can't sleep. The book release party was a-MAZE-ing.  Where do I begin? Me...in book signing mode! First of all, Roger and my best friend Jamie conspired to surprise me and they succeeded!  Jamie is my oldest and one of my dearest friends .  She also happens to be the photographer who took the cover photo for Four Seasons for Charlotte .  When I told her about the date for the book release party, I realized that she probably wouldn't be able to attend.  She does, after all, live in Florida. For the last few weeks, she has been sending me messages of congratulations, telling me how sorry she was that she couldn't make it.  I promised to send her one of the first copies.  What I didn't know was that she was working with Roger to visit this weekend.  She showed up at the book signing and totally made my day.  Getting to spend the last few hours just chatting with an old friend: Priceless.  I swear, we don't see each othe

I did not write this poem.  It was shared with me about a year ago and I love it because it is very TRUE. Don't forget: you can still enter the giveaway for my book .  What is a question you have always wanted to ask a grieving parent? No question is too off the wall! Follow this link to enter the giveaway.  Contest ends June 1.   What People Give You by Kathleen Sheeder Bonanno Long-faced irises. Mums. Pink roses and white roses and giant sunflowers, and hundreds of daisies. Fruit baskets with muscular pears, and water crackers and tiny jams and the steady march of casseroles. And money, people give money these days. Cards, of course: the Madonna, wise and sad just for you, Chinese cherry blossoms, sunsets and moonscapes, and dragonflies for transcendence. People stand by your sink and offer up their pain: Did you know I lost a baby once, or My eldest son was killed, or My mother died two months ago. People are good. They file into your carto

My grief journey has afforded me an opportunity for very interesting interactions with people.  One of the topics I discuss in Four Seasons for Charlotte   revolves around the idea of saying the right thing  or doing the right thing  when you try to support a person in crisis.  With that in mind, I wanted to share two very interesting interactions I had with relative strangers in the past two weeks.  Ever since Charlotte's death, I have braced myself for that inevitable question : Do you have any children? The question (and subsequent answers) take many forms, depending on the circumstances.  Sometimes I actually bring up the topic of Charlotte's life (and death) on my own.  Sometimes I wait for others to initiate.   Two weeks ago, I was expanding my knowledge of leadership in a Nonprofit Learning Point class.  During the lunch break, the conversation turned to a book I was reading and somehow the topic shifted to my own book release coming soon.  One of the people in the