Healing Ink: Writing Into Your Grief

A weeping willow tree, one flowery journal, two pens (in case one ran out of ink), and a box of Puffs tissues.  Those objects stayed close beside me.  In my early confusion over the loss …

Trees Symbolize Son’s Journey

“It was time to dig up the thin maple that died last fall and, like Daniel, did not bloom in the spring.”
It was time. In an hour the November afternoon would be dark. With Baby …

Contributing Writer Wisler’s Book Honored

The 2010 Christy Award nominees were announced yesterday and my
second novel, How Sweet It Is, is a finalist in the Contemporary
Romance category!

My first novel, Rain Song, was nominated last year in the First
Novel section. …

Crying With My Ancestors

Sometimes I think you need a little of your own history in order to be able to understand history. I can’t remember never knowing about those relatives. They were on my Grandma Hall’s side, residing …

Carrying Old Memories into a New Year

Christmas has ended, and the living room still has that unwrapped look. With the festivities now part of future memories, I anticipate the next hurdle: the start of a new year. The TV commercials romanticize champagne …

Thanksgiving is for the Bereaved

I have a hard time believing it is the season of holidays again. While this year should be easier since it will be our fifth Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s without our son Daniel, I …

Surviving the Holidays After the Death of a Child

That holiday-pang hit my stomach the first October after Daniel died. Greeting me at an arts and craft shop were gold and silver stockings, a Christmas tree draped with turquoise balls and a wreath of …

Marked by Death, for the Rest of Our Lives

After my four-year-old died, I was certain my family would never be the same again. It is true and has been proven over and over that we will no longer be the typical family living …

Mom’s Greatest Hero Was Only Four When He Died

I suppose my high school English teacher would like to think he made the biggest impression in my life. He loved to quote Shakespeare, Bryon and Keats. He could whip up a gourmet French dinner …

The Daniel Journal

I embraced it; I loathed it. It was a cloth bound book with blue and red swirled flowers on the cover. Inside were the raw words from my heart and soul.
Once it was filled with …

The Cup of Coffee: Small Kindnesses Help in Big Ways

October, for me, will always be radiation month. My son Daniel was diagnosed with cancer in May, and by the fall, he was scheduled for radiation treatments every morning. For two weeks, after putting my …

The Daniel Journal

I embraced it; I loathed it. It was a cloth bound book with blue and red swirled flowers on the cover. Inside were the raw words from my heart and soul.
Once it was filled with …

A Cup of Coffee: Acts of Kindness Remembered

October, for me, will always be radiation month. My son Daniel was diagnosed with cancer in May, and by the fall, he was scheduled for radiation treatments every morning. For two weeks, after putting my …

What Does it Mean to ‘Get on with Life’

Of all the statements and spiritual platitudes quoted to me since my son, Daniel, died, the phrase that I hear most frequently makes me squirm the most. “You have got to get on with your …

Surviving the Holidays After a Loved One’s Death

That holiday-pang hit my stomach the first October after Daniel died. Greeting me at an arts and craft shop were gold and silver stockings, a Christmas tree draped with turquoise balls and a wreath of …

Surviving the Tinsel: Grief During the Holidays

That holiday-pang hit my stomach the first October after Daniel died. Greeting me at an arts and craft shop were gold and silver stockings, a Christmas tree draped with turquoise balls and a wreath of …