Top 7 Life Lessons for Moving Forward

No, the title isn’t about babysitting time while their parents are out shopping, but the ages of my five granddaughters at the time it happened. The one-year-old has no memory of Nama but will learn about her through pictures and hearing stories. The older ones remember her, although their memories of [...]

  "We have an anchor that keeps the soul, Steadfast and sure while the billows roll, Fastened to the Rock which cannot move, Grounded firm and deep in the Savior's love." Priscilla Jane Owens (1829 - 1907) Growing up in church, we sang this old hymn above. I can still picture [...]

“What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” James 4:14b (ESV) Jasmine was only 70, yes, only 70. She was a "young" 70-year-old. I will never forget the time she was "carded" while purchasing a bottle of wine with our groceries. If there [...]

"Then the Lord God said, 'It is not good for man to be alone." Genesis 2:18 Jasmine was first admitted to the hospital at the height of the COVID pandemic and placed in isolation, which meant no visitors were allowed. Through a unique set of circumstances, I was permitted to visit [...]

"How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen?" (Habakkuk 1:2) "The LORD is near the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit" (Psalm 34:18) When the doctor said, "She will never recover," it felt like a punch in the gut! I never expected to hear [...]

The house is quiet now. The sound of Fox News or Asian dramas from the television is no longer flowing from the family room. The quietness reminds me that she is no longer here, and my sadness surfaces yet again. We spent a lot of time together at home. She was [...]

“If I had only known the last time would be the last time, I would’ve put off all the things I had to do.” From Scars in Heaven by Casting Crowns Amid the chaos in her hospital room, Jasmine was confused. I said to her, “They are transferring you to a [...]

“Faded photographs, covered now with lines and creases Tickets torn in half, memories in bits and pieces.” I am dating myself by bringing up the lyrics of this song, Traces, which was released in 1968 by The Classics IV. The song reflects upon memories of a love that has been lost, hoping [...]

"We don't 'move on' from grief. We 'move forward' with it." Nora McInerny Nora McInerny is an author and speaker who experienced grief first-hand by losing her husband and father and miscarrying a child within several weeks of each other. I counseled people who had lost loved ones, and now [...]