12-21-25 At 10:03 am today, the sun shone directly on the Tropic of Capricorn marking the Winter Solstice and for us in the northern Hemisphere, the beginning of Winter. Each day after today, the days will be slightly longer. I struggle with the darkness at this time of year, so for me, the extra minutesContinue reading “Winter Solstice”
Tag Archives: gratitude
A Harvest of Time and Effort
September 28, 2025 My vegetable garden has reached the state of late season chaos it comes to each fall. Although I am still harvesting tomatoes daily, some vines are yellowing and show signs of disease. Others are growing wildly across the garden, intertwining with late season cucumbers and a solidary eggplant. Soon I will needContinue reading “A Harvest of Time and Effort”
Hope is a Thing with Feathers
7/31/25 “Hope is a Thing with Feathers.” I have never been a poet, nor do I claim to be a poetry aficionado, but even I know that this is one of Emily Dickinson’s most famous poems. The line suddenly pushed its way into my mind as I was driving away from the Healing Place afterContinue reading “Hope is a Thing with Feathers”
Looking back without staring
Don’t Give Up 5 Minutes Before the Miracle
April 27, 2025 Writing posts for Mindful Musings has not been in the forefront of my mind lately. I continue to journal daily, and I keep up with my personal practices of yoga, meditation and exercise, but my urge to share my writing has been non-existent. Chalk it up to grief or working full-time orContinue reading “Don’t Give Up 5 Minutes Before the Miracle”
Rediscovering Joy
April 6, 2025 Grief is a bugger. It robs you of energy, fills you with uncomfortable and inconvenient emotions at highly inopportune moments and steals your ability to feel happy. Anyone who knew me before my eldest son died in 2023 would have described me as an optimist. I could always see the positive inContinue reading “Rediscovering Joy”
Autumnal Equinox
The light has taken on a different quality, especially in the past few weeks. Days are noticeably shorter, and the temperatures are cooling. As summer drew to a close, a few of our trees started to drop leaves and the sunshine is more angled as I drive to work each day. Green trees are showingContinue reading “Autumnal Equinox”
Fall Gardening
September 8, 2024 Gardening is a hopeful hobby. Each Spring I carefully select seedlings and seeds. I pull up the plants from the season before and turn the soil. It may sound silly, but I thank the dying plants as I remove them, for the produce they gave me and for the oxygen they addedContinue reading “Fall Gardening”
The Importance of Community
September 2, 2024 Finding connection with other people is extremely important to me. For over 30 years I have been the member of a 12-step support group for families of alcoholics, and I am sure that it is one of the primary reasons I have been able to continue to function and work since theContinue reading “The Importance of Community”
Gratitude in Grief?
January 17, 2024 Today marks six months since my eldest child Joseph Alexander Kossan passed away. His death certificate will forever say the wrong date, but I know beyond any doubt that Alex’s texts, calls, and heart stopped on July 17, 2023. My own heart is still shattered in a million pieces and often IContinue reading “Gratitude in Grief?”
Mindful Musings 