Courtney, thank you for being so damn honest. I sent this to my daughter and her wife as they try to deal with all of the above and wonder why they’re feeling so anxious so often. How hard it is to put aside all those images of the “good” parent that all parents have in their heads!
"You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope."
To feel more alive when death is at the other's door, may seem very self-centered, and yet it's a miraculous gift! Thank you for sharing your everyday experiences and those of your kids, for whom undeterred living is that experience! I loved the verbs you used in the para about Maya:
" helping;" "moving: "initiating." " enjoying." "builds." May we in our everyday contemplation cycle through those action words!!!
“At 40 years old, I feel more aware of who I really am than I have since I was a little girl.“ THIS! I’ve been reading so much lately, reading hungrily, the way I did when I was a kid or home from college as a younger woman, when I had the time to be aimless. I have missed that feeling. Thank you for writing this, Courtney, and for paying attention to your daughters’ concise wisdom.
Your newsletter is such a comfort. Thank you for sharing with us
Courtney, thank you for being so damn honest. I sent this to my daughter and her wife as they try to deal with all of the above and wonder why they’re feeling so anxious so often. How hard it is to put aside all those images of the “good” parent that all parents have in their heads!
"You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope."
- Thomas Merton
Love this, thanks Gary. What a perfect quotation for our times.
To feel more alive when death is at the other's door, may seem very self-centered, and yet it's a miraculous gift! Thank you for sharing your everyday experiences and those of your kids, for whom undeterred living is that experience! I loved the verbs you used in the para about Maya:
" helping;" "moving: "initiating." " enjoying." "builds." May we in our everyday contemplation cycle through those action words!!!
Wow, thanks for noticing those words. How cool...
“At 40 years old, I feel more aware of who I really am than I have since I was a little girl.“ THIS! I’ve been reading so much lately, reading hungrily, the way I did when I was a kid or home from college as a younger woman, when I had the time to be aimless. I have missed that feeling. Thank you for writing this, Courtney, and for paying attention to your daughters’ concise wisdom.
Thanks for reading it. And reveling in your reading! I love that feeling.
This is perfect! Exactly what I (we) need. Thank you.
Thank YOU.