Out with the Old, in with the New

We are at the end of 2022 and as I reflect on the positive highlights of the year they seem to be blurred by the negative news we get daily. It is more profitable for the news media to sensationalize tragedy, rather than heartwarming stories. I don’t like to make resolutions, however, this year I will be watching much less news and more love stories. A good Hallmark love story will offset the stress of hearing bad news. Furthermore, research has indicated that what we watch before we go to bed will resonate with us for 8 hours, so it makes sense to watch something positive or nothing at all. Reading is another passtime I stopped doing in 2022 and I vow to get back to more reading and less television. There are so many good books out there. One book that I wrote, ‘ The Third Road,’ recently got a rave review by a friend of mine. I want to share it with you:

“Just wanted to let you know while I was in NC visting my sister and my younger daughter Catlina, we were reading, ‘The Third Road,’ and we were blown away for me, again and again! So my sister said she is going to get the book for her friends at her church when she’s done reading it! This church does not believe in Catholicism, but is a full gospel church and my sister said she’s giving it to them anyway because you write with such love for Jesus that she must share your book! God is moving mountains with your books. Just wanted you to know and my brother told me to gift you this story! Love you! Dawn

Wow, that really was a wonderful gift from a friend in my prayer group who read the book recently, passed it along to her brother, (also in our prayer group) and he passed it along to his sister in NC. I loved writing the book and I even enjoy reading it. I will read it again in 2023 as a way to bring positivity to my life. As I shut out the old for 2022, in the form of the news, I will ring in the new with positive books and I will start with, The Third Road. My book brings you on a journey to discover the power within that brings much joy, peace and love. No matter what is happening in the world peace is attainable. There is a lovely saying by Norman Vincent Peale, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.”

Where are you putting your attention and thoughts? Positive thoughts always bring positive results. Out with the old and in with the new. Along your journey on The Third Road you may find your purpose in life. Having a purpose is one of the most rewarding things you can discover about yourself and it brings so much happiness and contentment.

My book is for everyone, whether Christian, Jewish, Buddist, Muslim, it really is for everyone.

Here is a small excerpt from a chapter called, ‘Your Purpose.’

Rabbi Harold Kushner put is so succinctly when he said, “Our souls are hungry for meaning, for the sense that we have figured out how to live so that our lives matter, so that the world will be at least a little bit diffferent for having passed through it.”

I just love that quote. I hope you join me in 2023 as we journey together on, The Third Road, and find much peace and joy.

Christmas is a time for Family

As we embark on Christmas of 2022, I am reminded that Christmas is a time for family. Last year my family had covid around Christmas and we wound up celebrating it in February, once everyone got well. It was disappointing, but so were many aspects of covid. This year we are hoping everyone is well enough to celebrate this festive holiday of love, peace and joy together. Once we acknowledge the birth of Christ by going to church, most of the world will celebrate with our family. Whether you are close to your family or not, many people try to get home for Christmas. Many travelers are braving the cold and the storms to get to their loved ones and some might not make it. This makes me even more grateful for my family this year and because of our distance during the past year. Many valuable lessons have emerged from covid, if you only look for them. I think the most important one is gratitude. Gratitude is always the equalizer in any storm, circumstance or problem. Being grateful in the midst of a storm assures that once you get on the other side of the storm the goal attained is more rewarding and the circumstances suddenly become more important.

If covid taught us one valuable lesson that is to appreciate our family. And as we gather around the table this year, and we acknowledge the baby infant Jesus, we come to realize that Jesus is part of our family and has been for many years. He has been at our table in Spirit and in our hearts during the storms of life. Jesus has been with us throughout covid and throughout each and every Christmas with or without family. Jesus is always within our hearts, as He promised to not leave us as orphans and to send the Holy Spirit to dwell in us forever.

Invite Jesus to your table today and better yet go to His table and receive the gift of life; the gift of the Eucharist as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, let our hearts acknowledge his joy, as we gather with our family in peace and love. Celebrate the joy of the birth of Christ and partake in His bread, for it is the bread of life. And always remember, no matter what the circumstances, family is part of Christmas and Jesus is always at the center of it all.

The loss of a pet can be overwhelming

Losing a pet is one of the most devastating trauma’s one can go through. The pain can be unbearable. You might ask yourself, why is it so painful? Believe it or not, the answer lies in your childhood. Your pet, for the most part, has been typically the most unconditionally loving part of one’s life. Let’s face it, not too many people are capable of loving unconditionally. A loving dog or cat loves totally unconditionally and that soul to soul love is very rare. So where does our childhood come into play? When our inner child needs are not met from age birth to 7 years, we grow up yearning to have that void within fulfilled. Our pet is quite amazing when it comes to filling our void within and our inner child is thrilled. Of course all of this is done on a subconscious level. So it stands to reason when your loving pet dies, part of the inner child dies along with it and this leaves one in an extremely vulnerable state with an incredible amount of pain and sorrow.

My online course, “How to overcome the loss of a loving pet,” gives you a step by step guide in getting to the root of the pain from childhood and helping one process the grief. You must process grief for it to be eradicated from your life. If you don’t, it will come back to haunt you in the future without warning. The awareness you will receive from my course will put you in the right direction of healing from the pain and moving on. You can get a copy for free on my website.

Dating Help

Let’s face it dating can be a challenge no matter how old you are. There are game players, scammers and those who are jerking others around online. How can one navigate the murky waters of dating under those conditions? My book, “Lessons from the Needle in a Haystack,” is designed to help you with dating challenges and foster fun with dating.

The first task is deciding what you want. Are you looking for a soulmate? Or perhaps you just want to casually date. Maybe you want to get married and have children. Or maybe you are looking for friend with benefits. Whatever you are looking for, defining it is crucial to obtaining it. When you enter the dating world it is imperative to define in details what you want. Once you do that, the next step is to look at your emotional readiness. Are you ready to get into a relationship or get married? My book offers a guideline on getting emotionally ready to move forward with dating. If you just broke up with a partner and are still left with emotional residual from your last relationship and have not processed it, chances are you will meet the same type of partner again. My book will help you in this area. You can pick it up on this website or on Amazon.

Grieving the loss of a Pet

The loss of a pet can be more overwhelming than any other traumatic event in one’s life. The loss is so great that many people fall into a deep depression for long periods of time. Why is the death of a pet so devastating? The answer lies in our childhood and is outlined in my online course, “How to overcome the grief of losing a loving pet.”

Most people have grown up in homes where they didn’t always get their needs met. They may have grown up with dysfunction, alcholism, addictions, absentee parents and a slew of circumstances that give a child a sense of longing for more attention. When that happens, we grow up as needy adults. This inner void ranges from not getting enough love, attention, support and this can lead to low-self esteem and other social issues.

Now, fast forward to adulthood. That void within has to be filled in some way. I call that inner being our inner child. That inner child is always looking for ways to get their needs met. Some of us fill it with various addictions, but others fill it with the love a pet. In my own circumstances, my Siberian husky Luke was an amazing dog. I didn’t realize it, but when I was struggling emotionally with an issue, he was my buffer. He was my companion on walks. We watched television together and he loved me unconditionally. He was filling that void with my inner child just by being this amazing loving dog. When he died, I experienced the most devastating pain I ever had in my life. You see, when Luke died part of my inner child died and I was reliving my childhood trauma’s, which was basically being a middle child and not getting all the love, support and nurturing a child needs for development. His death also brought up a childhood memory of when my grandmother died. Out of left field there was more grief hitting me in addition to Luke dying. My inner child was in turmoil, reliving my grandmothers death and also part of my inner child died when my best friend Luke died. All the love and support and friendship Luke gave me was now gone. This is why the pain is so unbearable.

In my online course, I will show you ways to come to terms with the death of your pet and to show you how to fill that void within. You can find this online course on my “events” page.

The Golden Girls

The Golden Girls were one of the most popular sitcom of all time from 1985 to 1992. The four comedic genius of the Golden Girls cast were Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty. These four women showed us that being middle age does not mean that life is over, but that life was to be lived at any age. They showed us about love relationships, dating, job issues, and so much more. They also brought a sense of friendship to those who watched them for years. They lived in Miami where a lot of people do retire, but not these women. They had careers and enjoyed their occupations. You can almost taste the orange juice as you watch them sip it during breakfast. And they almost always sorted out their problems over a fresh cheese cake at the kitchen table. Their problems ranged from sex to dating issues, to addictions, like gambling and prescription drugs, to ex husbands, being a widow, infidelity, death in the family and so much more in between. All four of these talented actress won an emmy award for her role in the Golden Girls.

In order for me to relax at night and turn off the worlds woes, I put on the Golden Girls on Hulu. I can watch any one of the 7 years of episodes on a whim, without commercials. One of my favorite episodes was when Dorothy finally met Lucas, the man of her dreams and got married. Dorothy was the one who always had a bad date, from a lawyer who wanted to be a clown, to the computer date that was still in love with his ex-wife, to the married man. She could never catch a break, until the very end, when the writers decided that Dorothy would get married. This was at a point where Bea Arthur was turning 70 and decided 7 years was enough for her and was leaving the show. She went out with a, “happily ever after” story, as she married the man of her dreams. Dorothy gave all women hope who were in their golden years, that it was possible to finally settle down with a fairytale relationship.

If you enjoy the Golden Girls as much as I do, then join me for my monthly virtual on-line Golden Girls Trivia game. We have a lot of fun showing our knowledge of the Golden Girls show and also at the end if anyone wants to imitate a line or a scene from Golden Girls they are welcome to do so. This is the highlight of the night. This game night is a way to bring people together in times of so much unrest. An hour of having some fun and hope. You can find all the details on my “Events” page.

Summer Fun

Summer is a time for fun, laughter and serenity, as one sits by the beach. The ocean has always been a place for healing and comfort. There is something very spiritual about being on the beach and taking in the breathtaking views of the vast ocean, as well as a sunset. There seems to be a rhythm and vibration when the sun sets, which is as powerful as the moons influence on the tide, as it pulls the tides in and out. There is a sychronized feeling one gets that clarifies we are all one in this vast universe and being at peace should be everyone’s goal.

Some awesome beaches in New York are Long Beach, Jones Beach, Bar Beach, Sunken Meadows and if you go way out east, Southold and Orient State Park beaches.

Relaxing on the beach takes on a new dimension for those empty nesters. It is a time to enjoy life at a slower pace then when the children were younger. My greatest memories with my two sons were being on the beach, especially Southold beach.

Whatever you do this summer, enjoy every weekend since there are only 13 weekends in the summer. Only 13 weekends! Make each one count, as we bring awareness to the fact that this day is all we have. Tomorrow is not promised to anyone. How are you going to spend your days? Let’s make it the best day ever and enjoy life.

Things are always working out for me

Things are always working out for me when I take a minute to listen to what my intuition is telling me. That inner whisper guides us on our journey through life. Things are always working for me when I go in the direction my intuition is guiding me to. That inner whisper within is God’s Spirit that wants us to be happy and at peace. Another part to add to this positive mode is to add position affirmations. Saying outloud “Things are always working out for me,” will reap you positive results. Affirmations are not given the attention and recognition they deserve. An affirmation is powerful beyond comprehension. However, once you start using position affirmations on a regular basis you will see positive results. It pretty much is the law of attraction.

Remember your thoughts are powerful, in combination with listening to your instincts. With both in play your life will always be in a state of everything working out for you.

Resisting hopelessness

Let’s face it life these days are not as easy as they were, let’s say, ten years ago. Inflation is high, the price of gas is high, crime is up and after two years still trying to rebound from a deadly pandemic of covid-19. However, resisting hopelessness is key to those who want to get back to normal. My book, The Third Road, offers hope in a world that seems hopeless on the surface. However, our inner world is always filled with love, peace and joy. Discover that inner world of hope in my book.

Discovering the power within is a gift most will not find in a lifetime. All the great sages in history have discovered this hidden treasure. The power that brings the end of war, that bring down dictatorships, and for the average soul, brings happiness and joy. Think of it this way. You have two roads to choose in life one is the dark menacing road the other a well-lit road, which one will you choose? Both roads are basically going to lead you on the life you choose to live. However, there is a third choice you were not aware of, until your guide points it out. The Third Road is the choice of freedom, peace, love and joy. Journey with me on, The Third Road, where dreams become a reality and fear has lost its power of you.

Additionally, sign up for my short guide on the 5 secrets to happiness, listed below.

How to attract your soulmate

There is a prerequisite before you can attract your soulmate. One of the prerequisites is you have to be the person you want to attract. For instance, if you are looking to attract a loving, kind and generous man. You have to resonate with being loving, kind and generous. We attract that which we are. If you think you can yell at the clerk at the local deli or make loud demands on the customer service representative and then go out and meet your soulmate, well it just doesn’t work that way. It all goes back to the law of attraction. The energy and vibrations we put out into the world comes back to us. It is a very simple concept and those who “get it” will benefit in a variety of ways in their life. This is only one prerequisite to attracting your soulmate. My online course, “How to Attract your Soulmate,” outlines a clear path to bring you and your soulmate together.