14Feb 2017 by CJ

My story, their story – our story

Love & Relationships
“There are scores of people waiting for someone just like us to come along; people who will appreciate our compassion, our encouragement, who will need our unique talents. Someone who will live a happier life merely because we took the time to share what we had to give.” ― Leo Buscaglia My story? Everyone has a story. Many are filled with an abundance of inspiration and hope, while others seem plagued by sorrow and despair. But no matter the circumstances or our fundamental place in society, we all have a story to tell. Stories overflowing with challenges and discoveries that eventually form the pages of our personal history books. I’ve lived on planet Earth now for over four decades. I’ve learned a great deal, lost even more, all while creating a…
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05Feb 2017 by CJ

Driving Miss Daisy teaches us a lesson about aging

Love & Relationships
The other night, I revisited a film I’d only seen in bits and pieces over the years – Driving Miss Daisy. You know how it happens – on a sleepless night flicking through television, you catch the middle, maybe the end, but hardly enough to piece together the entire storyline. But on this particular night, completely by chance, I’d turned on the television just as the opening credits appeared on screen. What luck! For those of you unfamiliar with the 1989 Academy Award Winner, Driving Miss Daisy follows Mrs. Daisy Werthan through the span of 25 years – beginning at age 72. While the story certainly focuses on many social and political issues occurring in the 1950’s and 1960’s, the overwhelming theme of Driving Miss Daisy is how growing old…
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19Sep 2016 by CJ

Piece by Piece – moving on from abandonment

Love & Relationships, Youth
When I first heard Kelly Clarkson’s song Piece by Piece, I found myself listening to it over and over again. I rarely define a style of music I listen to, mainly because I’m often attracted to amazing lyrics more than anything else. And Clarkson’s song certainly delivers. Here’s how her musical journey begins: And all I remember is your back Walking towards the airport, leaving us all in your past I traveled fifteen hundred miles to see you Begged you to want me, but you didn’t want to It’s the real-life story of Clarkson’s absentee father, and how her husband eventually was able to pick up the shattered pieces of her life and reaffirm there are still men out there who know how to be caring; know how to be…
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05Sep 2016 by CJ

Amending familial relationships can be hard

Life & Living, Love & Relationships
“It's not a person’s mistakes which define them - it's the way they make amends.”  ― Freya North I have cousins on my mother’s side, whom I haven’t seen in over 30 years. While some familial relationships experience such absences based on geographical location or the expansion of sub-families, mine seems to have more dramatic undertones, rather than a logical reality. Without airing out all my dirty laundry, there was a supposed “falling out” between members of the family - details of which have been the subject of speculation for years, but never fully revealed to me. I was around eight-years-old when this all occurred. And while I fully understand how turmoil inside the family can quickly divide people against each other, for me there’s still that little eight-year-old boy wondering…
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23Aug 2016 by CJ

Marriage is about compromise for success

Love & Relationships
“Marriage is about compromise; it's about doing something for the other person, even when you don't want to.” Nicholas Sparks The Wedding Of the few memories I have of my great-grandmother, one thing I clearly remember was the arduous relationship she had with my grandmother (her daughter-in-law). My grandmother was very easy to get along with, however, her mother-in-law was the true Italian matriarch – ruling over her roost with an iron fist. I always found that amusing, given the fact that she lived in a house dominated by males – her husband, my grandfather and his brother. Even so, she had lofty expectations for her children, and wasn’t pleased when each of her boys eventually put their wives ahead of her. Recognizing how difficult it continually was for my…
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