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Category: Communication

35 years of Graces

When I was young, I didn’t give much thought to marriage. I set my eyes on school and the Navy. While stationed in Rhode Island, I found a friend willing to risk deeper conversations with me. I recall one conversation with my friend, Tina, that served as a guiding, grace-filled word to my unfolding future. She asked me what I wanted in a husband. I thought about it and quickly answered. At the time, I…

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Food for thought

What inspires you? Recently, I traveled with two friends to Williamsburg, Virginia. We traveled there to spend three days together imagining and planning for the future of the nonprofit leadership work we crazily love. One of the restaurants we lunched in was named Food for Thought. We found the perfect place for women who share a combined 60+ years of training adults and students to communicate their ideas. The décor featured pictures of inventors, scientists,…

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Am I listening?

I struggle to listen. I have spent years reading, teaching, and practicing active listening, but I still struggle. Some friends would claim I am a good listener, but I know my inner struggle to attend and listen. This struggle showed up powerfully on a recent visit to my 91-year-old mother. My mom, Maxine, is declining. She no longer can link my name to her memory, but when I walk in the room with my husband,…

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Facebook is Faster than the DMV

Recently, I finished a bike ride on my nearby trail with Gary on a Friday. I have to overcome the grousing that often shows up before the ride. It’s so cold. I’m so tired. The wind is too strong. I am confessing that I complain before I ride. The bike ride took care of that interior critic. I was happily climbing in the van when I realized my driver’s license was gone! I can only…

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Prepare the Way

Are you already starting to breathe heavily and sigh at the approach of Christmas decorations invading store aisles? Has the looming pronouncements of supply chain shortages have you worried about getting your Christmas gift shopping done without delay? Personally, my own resistance to getting sucked into the rush and overwhelm is to honor Advent. Practice a pause to honor the season of making room in my heart for Christmas without adding any more pressure to…

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Does Anyone Iron Anymore?

In honor of my mother’s 91st birthday, a reflection on laundry. For most of my mother, Maxine’s childhood is a mystery. We could never get my mom to talk much about growing up in Quincy, Illinois. She was a depression-era baby born in 1930 and didn’t enjoy dwelling on any tale of difficulty or pain. Most of us conclude her silence meant a difficult time. However, Mom was quite ready to tell us about her…

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