family
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I am having a hard time picking a place to start with writing this post. Over the last week, I reflected on what I want to say, but it gets jumbled up every time. I am more in amazement that it has been five years. It sure as hell doesn’t feel like it. Driving to
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I definitely lucked out when it came to the two stepchildren I inherited. They are both fantastic kids my seventeen-year-old stepdaughter and seven-year-old stepson. However, them occasionally challenging me comes with the territory of being their fatherly figure. The little guy definitely likes to push my buttons from time to time. One he unintentionally presses
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This week’s post serves as a follow-up to last week’s. Feel free to check it out here: https://atomic-temporary-130610338.wpcomstaging.com/2024/02/12/to-the-point/ I finally practiced what I preached. Without going into too much personal detail, my mom made some questionable remarks recently that left me feeling hurt. She and I have a bit of a rough history that has
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So you know, yesterday (February 27th) would have been your 66th birthday. Although it has gotten easier to manage my feelings around anniversaries and holidays, it doesn’t mean I miss you any less. It’s been just over two years and three birthdays since you left this world. At least in the physical sense. I still
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I’m a day late on this one but for good reason. I purposely avoided social media yesterday. Distancing myself from the white noise made the day easier. Especially when the day serves as a bittersweet reminder. As much of a Hallmark holiday as it might be, holidays like Father’s Day carry meaning. It’s a day
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Honestly, things have been going pretty well in the world of the Caring Counselor. Work has been busy, but I am doing what I set out to do over a decade ago as both a mental health counselor and adjunct professor at my alma mater. Just as of last week, I procured another significant credential
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This will be your second birthday that you will not be here in your corporeal form. As your birthday nears and I see the date growing nearer, I am served this constant reminder. Has it gotten easier since we lost you in the physical world? No. Absolutely not. Has the intensity of the grief subsided?
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Growing up, I was obsessed with cartoons. I watched Rugrats and Spongebob before jumping on the schoolbus. I got home from school around 3 o’clock every day, which was just in time to plop down in my favorite chair to catch the latest episode of Pokemon. At night, it was whatever I could catch on
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Shortly after I wrote my last blog post about how my behaviors mimicked those of my father, I came across the above picture on my Facebook timeline. You know, this was always part of my internal conflict about my parents. My rational side clearly knew my parents were flawed. It is a wonder I did
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A few nights back, I had a dream. In this dream, I found myself meandering between the living room and kitchen of my childhood home. My dad soon walked into the kitchen and asked me to spend time with him (I cannot recall the exact wording). However, he was clearly intoxicated. I repeatedly told him
The Caring Counselor 