Thursday, August 09, 2012

Hangin' in Dallas

I'm really not in the mood to blog right now, not really feeling the inspiration - but upon looking that it's been since Saturday that I've put a post up, I feel obligated.

Plus, sometimes my absence means I'm in bed with headaches, and I just want to assure any family I haven't chatted with lately that might be avid readers that that is not the case.  Just lazy. =)

Brayden and Traig are both serving at Camp Harlow for their second of three weeks as Counselor Apprentices.  These boys were made for this role....though it is tiring for them and stretches them, they are so happy at Harlow.  Just awesome.  Tonight they get to spend the night out there after staying for a staff-only worship-filled campfire evening.  It will probably be one of their favorite nights of the summer.

Meanwhile, I'm hanging with the girls up at Michele's house.  Michael does come home in the evenings, and Baxter the puggle is constantly at my side, so we do have a little bit of testosterone mixed in.  I drove up with Mikayla early yesterday and it is just such a welcome retreat for me.

 It obviously hasn't been such a drag for the girls either.  This afternoon we took a bike ride to pick blackberries (just had my second helping of the resulting blackberry cobbler....so good!) - and then ended up at aLimeberry - a franchise Fro Yo store that just opened in Dallas.

The girls have also spent a lot of time doing this.... Anyone out there remember these?  The original "Fisher Price Little People"?  Michele and I ADORED these toys as kids.  Of this collection you see in the picture, about half are ones we played with and the other half acquired through Ebay.  They will never be gotten rid of!

The other project during our stay was creating Ombre Tie Dye Infinity Scarves.  The idea came from this Pinterest pin.  I'm really excited about the end result.  The girls enjoyed the project as well.

Finally, I have a question for any readers wanting to respond.  Lately I've been presented with a lot of scenarios in which a person is grieving.  Whether it is for a loved one that has passed away, a child who is suffering, a life that will never be what it could have been, or a very broken heart from a relationship being severed - plenty of folks shedding lots of tears over their loss.   I feel like I'm able to share my own rough times and how I've gotten through, can offer tangible options for day-by-day coping, and have plenty of resources to suggest - but wonder if there's more (beyond praying for the individual) that I might be missing that could be essential to helping others move through their grieving.  I'd love to hear any thoughts any of you have on this.

5 comments:

Alex said...

About your question:

A lot of times, people can't bring themselves to move on. I've found it helps to distract them from their grief, keeping them occupied to keep it off their mind so that they can move on without even noticing. This has its flaws, but it may help. I'm sorry to hear that you've been faced with these types of situations. Hope I've provided some help.

Family O'Foxes said...

Andrew has been enjoying hanging with Brayden, Traig and Andrew this week. He even missed soccer practice so he could hang out with them. Which shocked me because he doesn't like missing practices. So, they must be having a lot of fun out there.
~Amy

Neha said...

To be honest, I have gone through most of what you mentioned there. At times, I still think about my grand father who was my sole support after my mother passed away when I was 12. At times, I feel like I have failed completely in life. And at times, I feel like giving it all up. But then, I look at my husband who has brought in so much love in my life, which I don't know if I truly deserve. He seems to be the answer to all my prayers and tears.

Though there still are moments when tears roll down involuntarily, but those are of both sadness and joy.

There's not much that can be said to someone like me. I know days will be better and I understand that others have also gone through a lot. What helps me is when someone is there to listen to me, not advice or be judgmental. Just talking clears it all and the mind starts working again. A good friend and listener works best :)

StephieAnne said...

Thanks everyone for the thoughts so far. Neha, I think you and have gone through a lot of similarity in the joy that our husbands have provided and the rocky road that got us there.

I agree with all the suggestions so far. Offering company, distractions, listening (free of judgment and platitudes) seem to have been what helped me most too. However, it stills feel pretty insignificant when a person is sharing how much pain they are in.

However, this is what I needed to hear - there's definitely not a magic wand to take it all away. Definitely the healing involves the journey getting through it.

Unknown said...

awesome blog content with hillarious pictures.. you can also check out my blog

http://neerajdharya.blogspot.in/