Inspirational Stories

After Jim died, I put myself into hibernation mode. I purposely didn’t date or “put myself out there” because I didn’t want to get into a relationship. My kids were young and I wanted to focus on raising them. I knew they wouldn’t be living at home their entire lives, so I wanted to cherish every moment. I figured I’d have plenty of time to date when I knew they were well on their way to adulthood. My angels, God, and the Universe had different plans for me. During the summe

The names confuse me, but the result of them on my body is a memory I will live with forever! If anyone ever mentions one of these drugs… run for the hills! While taking country dance lessons in my 20’s, I met quite a few interesting individuals. Our class consisted of singles and couples who were interested in learning a few dance steps. The method used for learning how to dance involved switching partners for every song. That way we were able to learn how to dance with pa

Upon completion of my “branding” process with the amazingly creative brand artist, John, I was overwhelmed with emotions I struggled to understand. Gratitude, joy, freedom, sadness. Why were the feelings so mixed… so bittersweet? Had I developed a sense of codependency with him… my guide and teacher? Was I going to continue to rely on John to gently “nudge” me to stretch my beliefs, or was I going to venture out on my own, using the techniques John taught me, to continue gr

“Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible. ... Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.” health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier Gratitude is oftentimes an overlooked word, or feeling, in today’s society. Many people take opportunities and gifts given to them for granted, which

Unconditional love is a gift many parents give their children. Since children don’t come with owners manuals… sometimes raising a child...

Never did I ever think I’d experience this scenario. When I did, I hadn’t even heard of the movie with the same title. Maybe if I had, it wouldn’t have been so traumatic. While in college, I spent my sophomore year studying in Sweden. Since all of my classes were in Swedish I was truly immersed in the language and culture. It was an unforgettable year… something I would highly recommend for every young person. Not only was I living the Swedish lifestyle, but I was introduc

“I can’t do it!” I said, emphatically, as I was talking with my creative “Brand Artist”, John. “Just try it,” he replied. “Which story is your favorite?” he asked. “My Father’s Gift” I replied. “But I also really like the bunny story,” I added. “Tell me about the bunny story,” he requested. I started to retell the story of my son’s kindergarten teacher attending Jim’s visitation and giving my son a special bunny, then I stopped. “I honestly can’t do this.” Fear starte

“My heart hurts! He’s yelling at me!” screamed my friend into the telephone. Christine had just connected with her older brother. He was in a hospital, in Chicago, and his body was in a coma. She was trying to determine whether to take him off life support or not. His friends were telling her to keep the faith, but the doctors were saying there wasn’t any hope for his survival. Christine and I met during a two week intensive “healing techniques” workshop in California.

Early on in my teaching career, I worked in an inner city school with two speech clinicians, two Learning Disabilities teachers, one Early Childhood Special Needs teacher, and an occupational therapist. My job was working with first through fifth grade Developmentally Delayed children. Since it was my first teaching job, I didn’t realize how talented and dedicated these individuals were until I moved to a different school. These professionals included me, the “newbie”, in

Okay… twelve years of taking care of everyone else had finally taken its toll on me! After years of putting everyone else first in my life, I finally came to the conclusion that I needed to take care of me! That thought didn’t dawn on me until my second year of retirement. It hit me like a lightning bolt, an epiphany, Divine Insight, and it completely changed my world!! It was February of 2020 and my son had gone back to college to continue his freshman year studies. A de

Have you ever asked yourself, “Why is this happening to me?” It’s a common question we ask ourselves when we encounter a challenging or traumatic situation in our lives. Unfortunately, the feelings and emotions involved in the answer to this question often lead us into a downward spiral of fear, worry, anger, sleepless nights, and even depression. With all the talk about the effects of stress on our bodies and our general well-being, this downward spiral can cause our live

Just like you, my life has been filled with people, situations, and events that have shaped me into the complex individual I am today. This blog will tell stories of my life with my late husband, Jim, and our life together. I feel it’s important for you to understand some of the major events that took place before I became a widow. Jim and I met, the very first time, in college. It wasn’t until two years into our relationship that we discovered we had mutual friends. F

The “Snowstorm and Blizzard of 2007” was what the National Weather Service labeled it. Little did I know what tragic events would take place on that day. Nothing was usual about that day… thoughts of a possible “snow day” was the theme of the morning, as my family and I prepared to leave for school. Due to the pending snowstorm, I agreed to “ride share” with a friend. Usually I drove alone so I could stay late at work, if I needed to prepare for the following day. As

It was Christmas Day 2018. My visit was just going to be quick. In and out the door… heading back home and anticipating the 4 hour car trip trying to beat the impending snow storm. To my surprise, as I approached the door, I heard two dogs barking... I thought Ann only had one dog. To my surprise, two dogs greeted me at the door with tails wagging! “Ann, when did you get another dog”, I asked, knowing one dog was more than enough to take care of in the city. “Remembe

(The above technical terminology means a spontaneous brain bleed) Imagine meeting your husband’s neurosurgeon in the hospital’s waiting room, the morning after he was admitted for emergency brain surgery. Then, hearing the news that his prognosis is “not good”. “We were able to remove the hematoma when he was first admitted, but we weren’t able to stop the bleeding. He no longer has a gag reflex and the bleeding in his brain has continued since last night’s surgery. I’m s

Jim was admitted to the trauma hospital, 80 miles from our home, on the evening of March 1. A blinding snowstorm was blanketing the roadways with several feet of snow and had paralyzed travel for hundreds of miles. For the first four days, none of our family members were able to get to the hospital. This gave my boys and me time to grieve without anyone else around. I felt this time together, as a family, was a blessing from above. Blessings Embraced: Time with loved on

Four days after my husband was admitted to the hospital, all of our family members were finally able to join us to say their final goodbyes. He had been admitted during a massive snowstorm that paralyzed travel for hundreds of miles and many days. I’d held off the decision to donate Jim’s organs until I was able to confer with everyone, asking them what they felt about organ procurement. I knew in my heart it was important for all of Jim’s loved ones to share their though

On March 7, 2007, my father’s 80th birthday, we removed Jim, my late husband, from life-support. His internal defibrillator and pacemaker were the last medical devices disconnected from his soon-to-be life giving body, before the procurement organization could harvest his organs. Jim had been in the hospital since March 1, and the decision to work with Life Source, the organ procurement organization, was made on March 5. Once the decision was made, I was told it was time

After years of not wanting to get too close to anyone and standing in the shade during recess duty, I can finally accept myself. My closest friends never said anything, because to them, I was beautiful both inside and out. It wasn’t until about six months after I started taking a Club Sparkle product, called Nectura, that I noticed the scars on my face were disappearing. At first, I thought it was a figment of my imagination. Then people started to notice a difference in

Through the help of a caring nurse providing me with local hotel information, I’d reserved a room at a hotel with a waterpark. I knew my children would need to be children and not have to sit around a hospital waiting room for days at a time. However, I needed someone to watch my youngest son while I spent as much time with my love as possible, knowing he might not survive. Luckily, some of my close friends lived nearby, so I called upon them for support. Three beautiful s

On day four, the relatives started arriving to share their thoughts and words of love with Jim. One of Jim’s siblings had two young children. Tim, their father was a very close friend of Jim’s… they had grown-up together and shared common interests. He’d been considered one of the family since he started dating Jim’s sister. This blessed soul was another person who provided care for all of the children involved in this heart-breaking situation. At the time, with all of

“You can’t tell him you like him”, said a very significant person in my life. This person was someone I held in high regard, so of course I listened to the advice. Accepting this restrictive piece of wisdom, at the tender young age of 16, shaped my relationships from that day forward. Unfortunately, I lived the rest of my teenage years, and early adult life, believing I wasn’t supposed to tell the boys and men in my life that I liked them. Many budding love relationships

Jim’s sudden and tragic death turned my life upside down. My former life, as I knew it, had come to an end. I felt numb as I walked through the front door of our home. It seemed as if the past seven days had been a horrible dream. I wanted so desperately to feel normal again… but that wasn’t going to happen for many, many, many years. Much to my surprise, upon returning home, my huge deck was cleared of snow! When I saw it I almost cried. Periodically, while at the hos

The last thing on my mind, upon returning home, was probably the most important detail for everyone involved with the logistics of caring for three young children, two teenagers, and twelve adults… food preparation. Food was the LAST thing on my mind, but the FIRST thing on the minds of our thoughtful, loving, and generous friends and neighbors. Behind the scenes, meals were organized and prepared for every lunch and dinner for a week. Like clockwork, there was a knock