Family Connections Sometimes you have to stop the work you’re doing, put down the book you’re reading, turn off the TV and connect with your family. I’m leaving for a visit with my two granddaughters tomorrow. They live out of state and I make it a point to visit with them 4 or 5 times…
I first read David Elkind’s book, “The Hurried Child,” while in graduate school almost 25 years ago. It provided a course of treatment for me to use with families and their children. I encouraged families to relax and limit the stress that they imposed upon their kids. This stress usually took the form of over-involvement…
“A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy,” by William B. Irvine. I’m in Colorado visiting my two granddaughters as I write this. I started reading “A Guide to the Good Life” on the plane. It was one of the few times I wanted the flight to last longer. “Just let…
7:00 AM, November 13, 2018, EC-1 (Elephant Canyon –Campsite 1), Canyonlands National Park, Utah There is nothing like the silence of the desert. This very cold morning (20 degrees) is only interrupted by the quiet hiss of the Whisperlite-butane stove heating my morning coffee. It was cold last night. I had almost all of my…
Lessons from my Clients Solomon (not his real name) reminded me that my efforts and the efforts of the team of people in his life are not in vain. Solomon is a 26-year old young man, who watched his mother murdered in front of him when he was around 5 years old. She was beaten…
Why You Should Still Hike in the Fall & Winter Don’t shy away from hiking with your family during the Fall and Winter months as the positives clearly outweigh the negatives: NO BUGS! NO SPIDER WEBS! Those of you that have hiked in the summer months, know the experience of having those yucky spider webs…
Meaningful Moment: Watching the Sun set on the second night of backpacking in Canyonlands National Park, Utah. I had hiked into the Chessler Park area of the Needles District with 60+ lbs. on my back, through some beautiful and rugged terrain. Except for a few jet streams, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. I…
Meaningful Moment- Switchbacks I took three adolescent boys into the woods to train with backpacks this past weekend. It was therapeutic!!! We stopped on the trail in the Jefferson Memorial Forest and walked through a stream bed. We looked for geodes. It was three young teenagers in the woods, looking for geodes. I saw the…
Lessons from My Clients Sometimes the lessons we learn feel negative. I learned this past week that I cannot help everyone. It is sobering. I want to help everyone, but of course, some people have been so injured, or neglected, or have been broken to the point that they are beyond my help. And the…
WELCOME TO MY WAYPOINTS! As I explained in a previous blog, Waypoints are significant events or moments from my past week that help me stay oriented as to where I am and where I’m going. Lessons from My Clients: Let your Pain (Misery) Guide You I was speaking with a foster parent this past week. She…
