We are in Kelowna, BC, and I just wanted to share my spectacular moment
with you. We climbed down a very steep hill to incredible rapids and a
water fall. We are having such a wonderful time visiting our older son Tyler
and I will be speaking at the Huntington Society of Canada Conference on November 3rd, 2018. What an honour!

I am so completely filled with gratitude and happiness that I just wanted to
take a moment to say “thank you” to everyone who has been supportive and
for being our cheerleaders—I couldn’t have done it without you. 
I am now going to climb that steep hill… I can do it!! Great symbolism there! Sometimes the hills are steep, just hang onto something on your way up.

I am loving life here in Kelowna!
Thank you again for everything. For believing in me. 
For knowing that I could climb these steep hills. You can too!

​I love all of you,
and thank you for loving us!


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I have spoken a lot, about my 7 Take Aways, and Take Away #6:
Find your Post, and hold onto it. And your Post is anything you can turn to--
no matter what—in times of despair. It can be there for you. Yoga, meditation, religion, spirituality, art, music. And for me, it’s Nature. I go out in Nature
and I feel connected to something greater than me. I can hug a tree… literally,
I will hug a tree, and I am reminded that whatever I am going through is
only temporary. Like in Nature, you see the seasons and everything
constantly changing. And change is the only constant.
So Nature is my Post.

But also, sometimes (often, actually), in the busyness of life, you need a pause.
As my good friend, Julie Veitch (www.innercorecoach.com) says;

Stop. Breathe. Be Here Now.

In all the hectic-ness of everyday life, we don’t take that time, because we
don’t feel that we have enough time. We’re too busy. But you know, 5 or 10
minutes in Nature can change everything for me. Going for a walk will make
all the difference. It can change the rest of your day. So I encourage you,
take some time in Nature, no matter where you live.
If it’s near sand, a park in the city… wherever you are.

 Take the time to let Nature rejuvenate you!

It will be worth it, I promise.
Where do you love to spend time in Nature?
Share your comments below...

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 our Audio, From Avoidance to Resilience or your
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Back in the HBR studio, with Paul Mascarin, the owner of Muskoka Kia.
We’ve been talking about how he supports his community, and how individuals
and companies can also support their communities.

Paul: We talked about how you can donate your time, money if you can,
joining a service club (if you can make the time), all worthwhile things
and just giving back to the community.

Yvonne: Absolutely! You can always do something. It doesn’t have to be
a grand gesture, it doesn’t have to take a lot of money or time.

Paul adds: As they’ve said for centuries, “Every penny helps!”

Y: Every penny does help, and that is a very important message.
$5.00 is better than no dollars. 30 minutes is better than no time.

So, please ask yourself, “How can I best support my community?”
If we all do a little bit more, we’ll all be that much better off!

Paul: The entire community will.
                                                        
*As a side note, We are very grateful to Paul and the entire
Muskoka Kia team. They always make sure our vehicles are serviced and
ready to go. Kia supports us as we travel.We sure do put a lot of kms on our cars!

Thank you, Muskoka Kia, for continuously supporting your community
and
Love Your Life to Death! 


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Purchase your copy of Love Your Life to Death here,
 our Audio, From Avoidance to Resilience or your
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​

 
I am being transparent and sharing with you, that I was very disappointed!

As you know, I’ve left my nursing career to help create a culture
of change where we normalize conversations about grief and talk about it
BEFORE it arrives too. One of the things I’ve wanted to do is a Ted Talk.
For those who don’t know what they are (and if you don’t, you google it!),
they are “Ideas Worth Spreading”, in 18 minutes or less.
It’s been on my bucket list from day one.

I was well-prepared, I applied and was short listed, from 100 to 14 people
(very exciting!!). Then I went for an interview and it went very well; except one
of the interviewers was not able to attend. But the person I spoke with was very enthusiastic about my message. I felt hopeful. But a couple of weeks later,
I received an email letting me down apologetically. I did not make the final cut.

I was SO deeply disappointed, because Ted Talks are such a wonderful way
to share your message and so validating when you’re a speaker. I realize,
just like grief, life and everything in between… it’s like a roller coaster.

I’ve had great successes lately; my Alumnus of Distinction Award,
I’m was on the organizing committee and speaking at an international hospice/palliative care conference in Boston and much more.

So many great things and yet I had to feel my deep disappointment.
I had a little pity party—not going to lie—and I was a little crabby
(just ask my family!). And then I moved on! I know I will do my Ted Talk.

Disappointments are a part of this life journey we call life.
​Acknowledge and allow your feelings, then brush yourself off and keep on going.

And I promise you—I will announce here and now—that I will do my Tedx Talk before the end of 2019. Mark my word and hold me to it!

Have you been disappointed lately—and moved on???


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 our Audio, From Avoidance to Resilience or your
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​
​

I am recording this in September, 2018, and we are in the wake of
another natural disaster that hit our world. Three tornadoes destroyed many
homes in our nation’s capital of Ottawa, Ontario. There are so many people displaced, grieving and devastated.

This, of course, is not the first disaster that people have faced.
But it is another reminder that life is so unpredictable and change is the only constant. And in this, when there is such complex grief and so much going on…
It’s just begun. Grief of this magnitude (some people have died, pets died, belongings lost, uncertainty with insurance coverage, survivor guilt for those who didn’t lose their homes…), it goes on and on, and affects so many people-
directly and indirectly.

So, I felt compelled to share my message again!
When you don’t know what to do and you don’t know what to say,
it’s awkward and you can’t fix it;three words:

 Just Show Up!

You can make a difference! It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture.
Even the smallest act of kindness can make such a difference for people;
hug, text, email, call, sit silently, reach out bring food, help with… whatever
they need help with! Sometimes that just help with the daily tasks of living.

My husband, Geordie, is in Ottawa. He is part of a team that is helping out.
And I am reaching out to people and checking in, and I will continue to check in. And I ask you to do the same in any situation, wherever you are, if someone is facing something where they need you to Just Show Up, just be there for them,
be present and keep checking in. That’s the other big thing, we need to keep checking in with people. Many of the relief organizations have partnered to create one "go to" website if you would like to donate and help people affected in Ottawa. I have included the link here 

I am sending love to everyone
 who is struggling with something today!
​

Thank you for being part of our community!
Purchase your copy of Love Your Life to Death here,
 our Audio, From Avoidance to Resilience or your
#IJustShowedUp bracelet.
​