In January 2014, my son, David, 39, passed away following a 15-year addiction to heroin. We started out as an average suburban family: Father, mother, David, and Bill, an older brother. David’s father was a police officer, and I worked part-time as a secretary at the boys’ elementary school. Our lives centered on our community| The Phoenix Spirit
My first calls for help weren’t loud enough – given the deserted condo grounds three stories below. No tracks in the snow. Not even a bird or squirrel in the oak trees outside the screen. The sun was low, showing streaks on the sliding glass door that had closed with a solid, unmistakable click. I| The Phoenix Spirit
Shame definitely has a place in our lives when we’ve done something wrong or hurt someone else. But it has no place in our lives when all we are doing is simply being a human being or being different in some way we cannot help.| The Phoenix Spirit
John Driggs, LICSW, writes about the dangers of living through another person and not living your true self.| The Phoenix Spirit
The other day I was chatting with my good friend Julie, the Julie I walk and pray with—I have many Julies in my life. I was explaining to her my shoulders are disproportionally large for my body. I apologized to her because my sizeable shoulders were atmospherically leaning over the table. Disagreeing, she said I| The Phoenix Spirit
All my life I've felt there's something terribly wrong with me--something I can't put into words, something that makes me different from everybody else. People say, "Sheila, you are a good person" but I know they don't really like me. Sometimes I really hate myself. I know you'll think this is stupid. For the longest| The Phoenix Spirit