A Father’s Example
A young woman relates that when she was a little girl, her father, an artist, would often be busy at his easel...
A Father’s Example
Karen Mulder
Karen Mulder is the founder of the Wisdom of the Wounded ministry. She lives in Holland, Michigan with her husband Larry.
Chronic Pain?
Chronic Pain?
After I'd been out of commission for a few months, my pastor made a passing reference to "these chronic conditions." I corrected him—my condition wasn't chronic, it was just slow to abate. Now, five years on, I still don't know what to call my dis-ease and wonder whether I will ever feel “normal” again. But my dictionary defines chronic as "persisting for a long time," and there's no denying it's been a long time.
If I resist the word "chronic," I hesitate to claim "pain" as the problem. I've told doctors often that I don't really have pain. Rather, various discomforts and malfunctions, sometimes manageable, sometimes incapacitating, have wreaked havoc with my life and expectations.
Is Your Teenager Depressed?
Is Your Teenager Depressed?
All teens suffer bouts of moodiness and sadness from time to time. It’s all part of the emotional rollercoaster...
How can we offer hope to someone who is suffering?
How can we offer hope to someone who is suffering?
If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Providing hope to someone whose days are dark with worry or who is suffering with a serious illness is also giving them courage and the vitality to keep moving. What are some things we can do to bring that touch of hope?
How Can We Involve Our Teenagers in Caregiving?
How Can We Involve Our Teenagers in Caregiving?
Dear Karen,
I'd like caregiving to become a natural part of what my family does together. How can we involve our children in caregiving? How can we especially involve teenagers? - Sue
I have been discussing this questions with various individuals and following are some of my conclusions from those conversations:
Being A Friend To A Sick Friend
Being A Friend To A Sick Friend
How can I be a friend to a friend who’s sick?
Letty Pogrebin in her book, How to Be a Friend to a Friend Who’s Sick, gives the following advice:
1. The best response in any encounter with a sick friend is to say, “Tell me what I can do to make things easier for you—I really want to help.”
They Like Me
They Like Me
Camp Sunshine offers people ages 12 to 50 years old with developmental disabilities the opportunity to attend summer camp in a safe, caring and inclusive environment. There is a joyful spirit about Camp Sunshine that is transformative for every person who attends – whether you’re a camper, counselor or volunteer. The camp has an atmosphere that honors all people with total acceptance and unconditional love.
Barb’s Story
Barb’s Story
Grief is a normal and natural process by which a person makes a healthy adjustment to any significant loss in his or her life. Any significant loss (the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, a broken marriage, deterioration of health, a shattered dream) triggers the process. Most people experience some or all of the below emotional responses when they lose anything or anyone important in their lives. But first, read Barb’s story:
