Category Books

Small but Mighty Mustard Seed

May 8, 2020 · by · in Book, Books, Catholic, Faith, Family, Grieving with Mary · 3 Comments

We say we believe, we trust the Lord to care for us and our needs. And then life gives us a reality check. We find that trust becomes so much more difficult when we are challenged. We lose a meaningful job, beautiful home, or more painfully, a loved one, and that measure of faith quickly […]

Holy Week Online

April 2, 2020 · by · in "The Rosary Prayer by Prayer", Book, Books, Catholic, Christian, Faith, Family, Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, Saint Theodora and Her Promise to God, Saint Theodora Guerin, Seven Principles of Sainthood, spirituality · 3 Comments

We are approaching a most unusual Holy Week in the U.S. Typically, many of us regular church-goers would spend an extra day if not Thursday, Friday, and Saturday or Sunday in church. This will not happen this year as most churches, including mine, are closed due to COVID-19. One of my favorite Masses is the […]

COVID-19 Caregiving Challenges

March 23, 2020 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Family, Health, Navigating Alzheimer's, The Alzheimer's Spouse · 3 Comments

In the best of times, caring for our loved ones with dementia can be stressful. Under the cloud of COVID-19, we can be pushed to our limits. In addition to the round the clock supervision and direction, we have the concerns about sanitation. Loved ones with dementia are typically messy in the bathroom and at […]

The Lord Be With You

March 17, 2020 · by · in "The Rosary Prayer by Prayer", Book, Books, Catholic, Christian, Faith, Rosary · 1 Comment

Is there a better greeting than to wish one another for God to be with us? “The Lord be with you (Dominus vobiscum),” is an ancient greeting and blessing traced to the Vulgate (Latin translation) of Scripture from the verses of Ruth 2:4, 2 Chronicles 15:2, and 1 Samuel 17:37. More powerful is the greeting […]

One Year Later

March 7, 2020 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Death and Dying, Faith, Family, Midwest, The Alzheimer's Spouse · 3 Comments

Life goes on. Our loved ones pass and it’s a day, a week, a year. Before we know it, it’s 21 years since we last kissed their cheek, as it is with my mother. Our loved ones are frozen in time. We remember them just as we saw them last. But we keep growing older, […]

Work as Worship

February 21, 2020 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Catholic, Christian, Navigating Alzheimer's, The Alzheimer's Spouse · Leave a comment

My wise, yoga friend, Hansa, asked what I’ve been up to. I told her that I was working a lot, grateful for the work, but had little free time. She responded, “Work is worship. Yes, we get paid, but we also worship through our work.” I’ve been pondering Hansa’s words and understand what she was […]

God’s Curious Timing

February 3, 2020 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Catholic, Christian, Death and Dying, Faith, Family, Navigating Alzheimer's, Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, Saint Theodora and Her Promise to God, Saint Theodora Guerin, Seven Principles of Sainthood, spirituality, The Alzheimer's Spouse, Young in the Spirit · Leave a comment

God pushes us. The tougher the situations we’re presented, the more likely we’ll also be offered opportunities to use our God-given gifts to assist others in similar situations. I’ve been richly blessed as well as greatly challenged most of my life. But that doesn’t seem to be an excuse to slack off through my senior […]

Dementia-Style Holidays

November 26, 2019 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Family, Health, Navigating Alzheimer's, The Alzheimer's Spouse · Leave a comment

When Alzheimer’s is on the scale, a drop of anything can send everything crashing. Families long for the traditions that mark the holidays. Special foods, music, colors, clothing, and decor trigger emotions and tie memories of the past with the ones we make today. Sadly, our meaningful traditions are likely to be too much for […]

The Long Inevitable Good-Bye

November 8, 2019 · by · in Alzheimer's disease, Book, Books, Death and Dying, Faith, Family, Navigating Alzheimer's, The Alzheimer's Spouse · Leave a comment

Marshall passed away 8 months ago today. His passage still disturbs me. Witnessing such a strong, active man decline over more than 15 years and then in the end to become so very frail, dependent on total care for every basic need, retching from drug withdrawal, and unable to communicate, was death by a thousand […]

Pilgrim Path

October 30, 2019 · by · in "The Rosary Prayer by Prayer", Book, Books, Catholic, Faith · 3 Comments

Recently, I ventured on an incredible pilgrimage to Israel and Italy with my daughter, Lisa. I’m looking forward to sharing photos and information about it in following posts. One thing I can tell you now is that it was memorable, moving, and spiritually uplifting. A pilgrimage is a special kind of a trip. It is […]

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