There are so many things that we want to accomplish each day, why sweat the small stuff?   When it comes to raising children, I often hear people say, “You have to pick your battles.”  I tend to agree with choosing to focus on the things you feel are most important.  Allowing some of the smaller less important things to go and focusing on the more important issues at hand.  However, it is important to make sure you focus on some of the issues.  Picking your battles does require you to choose items to focus on!   For me, when we lived…

Honesty is a very tricky thing.  On the one hand, we want to be honest with others and on the other hand, sometimes honesty can be very hurtful. Honesty is important and should be heartfelt, taking into consideration how we would feel being told the same information by someone else.  One of the most crucial points is how honesty is delivered. Being honest to a fault can be tough on friendships. It can be hurtful, ugly, and yet sometimes necessary.  It gets difficult when there is a fine line between being honest, not saying anything, and lying.  Sometimes these are…

Sometimes our feelings of rejection are real, other times the rejection is perceived.  Either way, it is a terrible feeling and one that we hope rarely or never happens to anyone.  Unfortunately, it happens to most of us all too often.   Welcoming people into our circle of friends is a risk, particularly those who were once rejected.  We normally welcome people of like minds who have similar values as ourselves.  However, it is more difficult to accept people who have for some reason been an outsider or lost their rapport with the group.   Not being aware of people feeling rejected…

Just as the moon shines light through the darkness so does hope. Sometimes the moon shines bright, other times it is difficult to find. Hope also shines bright at times and at other times one has to search for signs of hope. Although we don’t always see it, the moon is always there. So too, hope is always present. During the dark, difficult times, finding hope can be a struggle. But hope is present for those who choose to have faith. I can remember times when hanging on to hope was difficult, but it has always paid off. One…