Happy New Year! Welcome to the start of a brand-new year! I love the blank slate a new year brings, a fresh start. And this year is no exception, now more than ever we need a sense of a fresh start. 2022 has the promise of so many good things for all of us! No matter what is behind is behind u…Read More
The holiday season is filled with so many delights for the senses! Baking involves smell, taste, and touch and becomes a gateway to store powerful, positive memories. Guest blogger, Justina Wong, provides a personal insight on the power of baking. Please welcome her voice to our blog. The one part…Read More
The Christian church traditionally celebrates All Saints’ Day on November 1st. The day is set aside for remembering and honoring loved ones who have passed in the previous year. Some cultures, such as Mexico, go further and make the celebration festive as Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead…Read More
We are officially in the autumn season! School is well underway. Routines of work and life have resumed after the relaxed schedule of summer break. The cooler temperatures and changing seasons make me reflect on more than pumpkin spice lattes and apple cider. Autumn brings with it vibrant colo…Read More
This time last year we reflected on freedom in a slightly cautious, careful manner while navigating various levels of restrictions. Twelve months later the tune has changed. Many of us, me included, have experienced a greater understanding and appreciation of the word “Freedom.” This year …Read More
The ball has dropped, the fireworks burst, the confetti tossed. The New Year has begun! If you have not already done so, it is time to flip open the new calendar, open that new planner and begin penciling in appointments and commitments for 2021. Or maybe scroll to a new year on your digital c…Read More
What comes to mind when you hear the familiar melody and the song that begins, “On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me—a partridge in a pear tree”? Do you anticipate a nice long Christmas carol carefully walking through all the gifts the true lover has given and received—ma…Read More
When the people we refer to now as Pilgrims, left the shores of England in September of 1620, they had no idea what the next 12-15 months would hold for them. They knew that their religious liberties were at stake, their children’s futures were being shaped by a culture they did not condone, and…Read More
When I was five years old I received a black and yellow Tonka bulldozer as a Christmas gift. On my hands and knees, I pushed that thing everywhere pretending to be a one man road crew! One day I noticed an actual work crew in our neighborhood installing a new sidewalk. Eager to get in on the a…Read More
After months of changes in typical procedures, we are all beginning to acclimate to changes and cancellations. This lighter post serves to remind us that everything is not cancelled. Sometimes we just need to change our lens to look for the things we can appreciate this summer. So what isn’t can…Read More
Pass the Potato Salad, but Hold the Opinions This weekend people will gather, in state-approved group numbers, to celebrate our nation’s Independence. Some community events may still happen as usual while others may be cancelled this year. But one celebration likely to happen regardless is the…Read More
Soul. What is it? Though we see it in Facebook memes, sing songs about it, and know we have one, what exactly is it? Merriam-Webster gives this as the first definition of “soul”: the immaterial essence, animating principle, or actuating cause of an individual life In a word, it’s the part of y…Read More