My Life

The List That Saved My Marriage What an inventory of my husband's shortcomings taught me Becky Zerbe  T he day had come. I'd lasted as long as I could in my marriage. Once my husband, Bill, left for work, I packed a bag for myself and our 14-month-old son and left our home. It was the only year in our married life when we lived in the same town as my parents. Obviously the convenience of being able to run to Mom and Dad made my decision to leave Bill easier. With a tear-stained, angry face, I walked into Mom's kitchen. She held the baby while I sobbed my declaration of independence. A washcloth and cup of coffee later, Mom told me she and Dad would help me. I was comforted to know they'd be there for me. "But before you leave Bill," she said, "I have one task for you to complete." Mom put down my sleeping son, took a sheet of paper and pen, and drew a vertical line down the middle of the page. She told me to list in the left colu...

9 Things Not to Say to Someone Who's Grieving Learn what you shouldn’t mention to someone going through a loss By Laurie Sue Brockway When a friend loses a loved one, our hearts ache for them. We want so much to comfort, soothe and make things better, yet we end up sputtering out the wrong words because we don’t know what to say when someone dies. “We’re trained not to discuss death,” says grief expert John Welshons, author of Awakening from Grief .  “On top of that, we’re uncomfortable with silence, crying and sharing someone’s grief, so we try to fix grief instead.” Not only does that approach not work, but choosing the wrong words can cause more pain. Here’s why these nine common statements are particularly hurtful to grievers.   You must be strong now. People need to fully express their grief before they can heal. Telling someone to pull herself together quickly isn’t helpful. “When my mother died when I was 12, everyone said, ‘Be strong. Tak...

Its been a very long while since I blogged but things have been good. I can confess that the Lord has been good to us and we are most grateful. We had August holidays for Samara and she had a load of fun. I didnt manage to tag her along to work with me because the weather then was just not favourable. October 13th marks 1 year since God blessed us with Jaden. I Know it shall be on a Sunday and I have been wondering what we shall do on the day but this far I have learned to take it a say at a time. In August, I had travelled and was away for a week but amazingly I missed Jaden more than I did hubby and baby gal. We spoke daily but I missed shopping for Jaden. This past Sunday, I broke down in Church as I remembered how last year a time like this we were doing count down to seeing our handsome boy. But a thought struck me..he has been in Heaven almost a year..he has had pure bliss and happiness with God and for that am grateful. The Lord has been our comfort and strength. I am amazed...