Blog
An Eclectic Life
Living Fearlessly
Grief, like most life changing experiences, teaches us something. Fully realizing that people I love will one day die and that "those sort of things" do NOT only happen to other people drove home the fact that to live well means to live more fearlessly and to fear...
The Power of Story
I tell my grief story so that others will be more comfortable in telling theirs. Many thanks to Becky at The Death Dialogues Project for giving me the opportunity to share my story, laugh a little and speak candidly about why we need to collectively move forward in...
Platinum Blonde
“Platinum Blonde” is one of the nicer things someone has said to me since I stopped putting highlights into my every changing hair. “If you’re over 65…” was one of the least, if not the least, welcome comment I’ve heard. I’m 55. The funny thing is that I would never...
March 11, 2022: How Far We’ve Come
Coffee & Chocolate: Pandemic Essentials and Self-care It’s the middle of March in Toronto and it’s snowing. Time to laugh, remember pandemic March 2020 & 2021, and keep moving forward. Three things I said 1. "I didn’t get back to you yet because I was busy...
Caring and No “Good” Choices
When There are No "Good" Choices Drawing out ideas always helps me- even if it just makes me giggle at my 'style'. When There Are No "Good" Choices There comes a point in time for all of us when the decision we must make is between two less than stellar choices. ...
Cinnamon Rouge- A poem for February
Cinnamon Rouge Cinnamon Rouge By Heike Mertins Cinnamon Rouge Spicy, warm and red Vibrant It fills my mouth with brazen delight And fairies sashay lightly cross my tongue Cool, cool blue So cold I taste your icicles Crackling, crisp, sharp and brittle Broken...
February 1, 2022: How far we’ve come
Even with snow in the forecast... breaking ice on the lake reminds me that everything changes. Writers write. It’s what we do to make sense of the world and sometimes poke a little fun at it. Today I found this on my desktop. It documents a couple of...
REAL LIFE QUESTIONS
Would you try to reach out to someone and fix a relationship if you knew you were dying? Why not start before that happens? It's a better way to live. Stay well, Heike Image sources: Clipart-library.com, IMGBIN.com
Widow Wednesday #19-Resilience
Resilience: When poppies grow beside railroad tracks Dear Widows and Widowers, and those who love them, if you’re reading this post, you are resilient. In our society, simply reading and talking about death, dying, and rebuilding one’s life after a tragedy or trauma...
Widow Wednesday #18:Grief Class
A Pseudo Intellectual Goes to Grief Class Let the story begin… Strong and Independent I don’t do circles. I don’t sit in circles and share. I develop strategies, implement, pivot when required and, more often than not, I succeed. I am a competent woman who has...
Widow Wednesday #17 Flashbacks
Flashbacks are NORMAL Flashback: a past incident recurring vividly in the mind (Merriam-Webster) Though we often associate flashbacks with PTSD, it’s not uncommon to experience flashbacks after the loss of a loved one. I like to think of my flashbacks as snap...
Letting It Go
Will I Remember This In 5 Years? I needed to remind myself of what was important. So I came up with two questions to ask whenever I found myself worrying, feeling anxious, or falling down the dreaded rabbit hole. "Will I remember this in 5 years?" was the first of...